Dawn Of The Artifacts 1 - Dusk
by Cypher-SB
Summary: Many artifacts from previous ages can be found, many with purposes unknown and confusing enchantments, but most of incredible value nonetheless. Some, however, are coveted by those who are movers and shakers of the sixth world, and fewer still know what they are truly capable of. Based on the same titled mission book written by Jennifer Harding.
1. Chapter 1

Meet Ms. Johnson (reposted 2015/08/07)

Winter in the Pacific Northwest was miserable, and there were times that Rinzler found it hard to even consider it to actually be winter. To him, winter was weather so cold that it did not rain but snowed, and the snow was piled thick on the ground everywhere.

Looking out the window towards the Seattle metroplex there was little snow to be seen, but plenty of rain lately, a dirty rain that tined everything brown and added a tangy stench to the air that assaulted his senses. At least the window blocked out the true dreariness of the cloud choked city.

A chirp from his commlink broke Rinzler from his reverie. He picked it up off of the small table beside him, swiping his finger across the screen to accept the call.

"Yes Joss?" he asked, recognizing the familiar face on the Airware's tiny screen. Joss was a long time fixer for Rinzler, a stout human that had helped him since he woke up naked and clueless almost ten years ago. Since then Rinzler was not so clueless to the world around him, but everything prior to July of 2061 was still a mystery to him.

"Hey, I got a request from a Ms. Johnson that needs a team to travel with her overseas. Says it's someplace tropical."

"Tropical?" Rinzler asked, "Just about anywhere sounds better than here right now."

"No joke. Anyway, I'm uploading the address and a broadcast code to your 'link for the meet. It's at Club 77, and she's got a room reserved for five o'clock. Pretty sure you know the place."

Rinzler groaned. It was not that he did not like such high class places like Club 77, but it was having to deal with their magical security again that really bothered him. "You know if they still got the same magicians working there?" he asked.

"Sorry, not a clue. Should I let Ms. Johnson know about, ah, your little predicament?"

"Only if she asks. I'll deal with it myself."

"Will do. And good luck." Joss said as he ended the call.

As early as it was Rinzler would have had plenty of time to prepare himself for visiting such a ritzy establishment.

Several hours later there was a knock at the door to Rinzler's small place. He already knew who it was before he opened the door. At the same time the gray of the city behind him came through, the dulled oppression of the astral world that was forever a part of Rinzler's world.

Filling the doorway was a black haired fomori with dark curling ram's horns, his aura a more vibrant red with the slight shading and black spots of cybernetic implants. His suit from Zoé was dark blue with a few yellow contrasts and some Norse runes embroidered in silvery yellow thread at the collar, and over his left eye was a simple black eye patch that almost gave him a piratical look. Cyclops was his name on the street, though Rinzler knew the truth of the eye patch he wore.

"You ready for this?" Cyclops asked, his voice a deep baritone.

"I had the place checked out earlier, so I think so." Rinzler said. Cyclops stepped aside to let him out, and Rinzler made sure his door was locked before they left.

Rinzler's suit might have looked much simpler than Cyclops's, coming from Vashion Island's Synergist line. The high collar suit had no lapels or obvious buttons (hidden fasteners were used instead), being nearly all black save for a dark red shirt he wore. While the long jacket he wore had two concealed holsters incorporated into it they were empty. In all of his years in working in the shadows Rinzler had never learned to properly fire a handgun. He never felt he needed to.

"How's the girl?" Rinzler asked as they walked out to Cyclops's van.

"Doing better now. I think she's starting to believe that the Yakuza aren't coming after her after all."

"Does she still think we're some Japanese gods?" Rinzler asked as he opened the passenger side door.

Cyclops chuckled. "Demons, actually, and yes she still does, I think. Already dropped her off with Tinkerbell, so she'll be okay for a few days."

It had been on a previous job a few weeks ago when they had crossed paths with a Yakuza slave trader bringing in girls through a Tacoma dockyard. Cyclops had blasted a Yakuza foot solder with one of his spells, a yell that unleashed a gust of wind that Rinzler had seen the fomori use to flip over a pickup truck once. The young Japanese girl had immediately become enraptured with her rescuer. It had turned out for the best since the other girls they had rescued all had SINs and families to return to.

And Rinzler had never told Cyclops of what he saw in the girl's aura as soon as she had embraced him, the bright red laced with streaks of yellow suddenly turning spotted with splotches of dark red and shades of vibrant purple. He also knew that Cyclops was the kind of person to not take advantage of such feelings in a young girl.

After the van had been parked the two got out and started walking towards the nondescript door of the unmarked building that was Club 77. Even in the astral the neighborhood looked unremarkable, though the bright spot of a single human standing beside the door might have been the only oddity. Outside of the astral Rinzer did notice more clearly the collection of expensive looking cars in the same lot Cyclops had parked his less impressive van.

Rinzler remembered the code that Joss had provided him, pressing the icon on his commlink's display screen to activate it.

There was a lone person standing outside of the door. He wordlessly opened it for both of them. Silently Rinzler nodded his thanks, looking at the white wall of light that was Club 77's ward, the magical barrier set to try and keep out astrally projecting magicians and other prying entities of magic. Rinzler held a guarded breath as he focused his mind, aligning himself to the ward, hopefully mimicking its creator well enough to step through. The moment of truth came when he took that step, and passed through without issue into the breezeway.

Two more people stood guard inside the breezeway, though only a curtain of heavy red fabric blocked their path into the club proper. "Please remember to respect our other guests and disable all wireless devices." the guard at the curtain told them.

Rinzler pulled out his commlink once more, pressing a different icon that immediately disabled all of its wireless functionality. Cyclops stepped through first.

The interior was nothing like the breezeway. Cool industrial plasteel was replaced with warm varnished woods, rich red draperies hanging from the walls, and soft lighting that came from nothing but real candles at the tables and the occasional wall sconce. At the back was a live jazz ensemble playing music on stage, and using real instruments. Even the astral felt pleasant in here, with most people's auras showing bright red.

"Can I help you gentlemen?" asked a woman in a skin-tight cocktail dress. She looked like she was the club hostess, her aura a bright red with a few motes of green flitting about.

"We have a reservation with a Ms. Johnson at five." Cyclops said.

"If you'll come this way, please?" the hostess asked them.

They were led off to the side to a wood paneled corridor, far from the open club room, to one of several private rooms. Even here the doorway was more than large enough for Cyclops.

Despite her diminutive size, the woman opened the door easily, sliding silently as she pushed effortlessly.

Inside were two couches, a large chair and two smaller chairs, along with a real wooden dining table set with a white linen tablecloth and crystal glasses. Against one wall was a hearth with a real fire burning in it.

They were probably the last ones there, it looked like. In one chair was a brunette elf wearing an ice blue suit. She held a wineglass in one hand, and Rinzler noticed an interesting dragon styled ring on one finger. Her aura came off cooler than most, more of a faded rose pink than red, but still vibrant and intact, with streamers of orange and green circling.

In the other of the smaller chairs looked like a little girl, and by little meaning she was easily less than half of Rinzler's meter-eight-six in height. She had mouse brown hair and eyes, thin red framed glasses, and wore a dark red skirt and jacket. Her aura was red mixed with some flickering stars of silver and white, all connected by thin ribbons of blue that he saw in awakened individuals. As small as she was he figured she was a dwarf child.

Two men sat at the ends of one of the couches. One had brown hair and obvious cybernetic eyes, wearing what might have been a Zoé knockoff suit, cheap enough most could afford yet looking pricy enough that a casual glance would say "money." The man's aura was heavily damaged, with rivers of black running throughout his body and infusing his skeleton.

The other man had lighter brown hair that was clean cut and natural green eyes, but his aura was also rent with implants though not quite as bad as the other man's. He wore a white suit from Zoé's Executive Suite line.

"Anything to drink, sirs?" the hostess asked them.

"Hurlg, in a proper container." Cyclops said.

"Vodka, neat." Rinzler said.

The hostess nodded and left without saying a word.

Cyclops took the one large chair for himself. Rinzler dropped down on the empty couch.

It was much sooner than Rinzler expected for their drinks to arrive. He suspected that the staff did use some form of wireless to relay orders from the guests.

"Don't let that knock you off your ass." commented the cleaner looking man as Cyclops accepted his stein of hurlg.

"You're what, eighty kilos soaking wet?" Cyclops asked before taking a good swig of his drink. Even where Rinzler sat he could smell the nutmeg in the thick ale. "I'm four times your mass at least."

The other man softly, and a little nervously, chuckled just before taking a sip of his scotch.

Rinzler took a look at his drink as it chilled his hand, the squat glass frosting over from how cold the vodka within it was. He rubbed his finger over it, clearing a swatch of frost to see the drink within, clear with a slight hint of blue.

"Right, now to business." Ms. Johnson said as Rinzler took his first sip, "I trust your fixers mentioned that I'm looking for some traveling companions? Yes? Well, I'm actually in the business myself. I've been hired by a private antiquities collector, who recently lost an item from his collection. His only clue is this man, who has apparently been hired by a rival collector to find the item first. He's an elf who goes by the name of Samriel Lockwood. One or both of those names are likely to be false.

"We've been tracking him, but now it appears he's gone to Lagos. We need to locate him quickly and trail him to the item. Now normally, I work alone, but Lagos… well, it's not exactly a safe city for a single woman. If you're amenable, I'd like to hire you to accompany me as security, and you can also help out in my investigation."

"Why is it not a safe city?" the girl asked.

"It's a little thing called 'Equal Rights.'" the clean cut man answered, "Over there, if you're a woman you're third rate property at best. And, ah, it's worse if you're also a magician."

The girl scowled.

"Would a place like Lagos be a place we want to bring a child?" Rinzler asked.

Immediately the girl's aura erupted with starbursts of nova orange and yellow. "I'm not a girl, I'm a gnome and I'm twenty-five."

"Alright then." Rinzler said, noticing the diminishing starbursts in her aura as she seemed to think he believed her. For the time he would give her the benefit of a doubt.

"Now as you can imagine," Ms. Johnson continued, "the trail grows colder with every hour, so I'd like to leave as soon as possible. In the morning, in fact."

"So why aren't we, you know, like, doing this on the way to the airport?" asked the man with the cybernetic eyes.

"Tomorrow morning is, unfortunately, the soonest we can leave." Ms. Johnson answered, "Now I'm willing to pay two thousand nuyen per person, per day, plus a per diem of two hundred and fifty nuyen with a guaranteed minimum of five days paid up front. I'll also cover our lodging in Lagos, plus the cost of travel to and from Nigeria. If we find the lost item, and you assist me in recovering it, I'll also split the 'finder's fee' with you – which would be fifty thousand nuyen for you to split."

"Reasonable enough to me." Cyclops said.

"Ten thousand if we split it evenly," the clean cut man said, "before expenses."

"Before expenses?" the gnome asked.

"Not accustomed to team pay?" Cyclops asked her.

"It's not that. I'd just I'd like to know ahead of time if I'm going to lose money for someone else's stupidity."

"Well, it's not like we're going to be springing for everyone else's stuff." the clean cut man said, "Don't forget the two thousand per day we'll be getting, and the per diem. Unless there's something serious we'll have money to spend without dipping into our reward money."

The gnome silently nodded.

"Fine by me." Rinzler said.

"Wonderful." Ms. Johnson said, clapping her hands together once, "Since we'll be traveling together, you can call me Jane. Ms. Johnson is something I'd call my employer."

"Cyclops." Cyclops said.

"Icebreaker." the clean cut man said.

"Wheeler" the other man said.

"Digger." the gnome said.

"Rinzler."

"I think I've heard of you." Icebreaker said. "Digger, gnome hacker extraordinaire and magician."

"Better than me?" Wheeler asked.

"You're the one that keeps using outdated script kitties." Icebreaker replied. "She's at least coded her own software and keeps it up to date."

"We'll have plenty of time to get to know each other on the flights to Lagos." Cyclops said.

"He's right." Jane said, "So, before we leave, there's a few things you should probably know." She stood to walk around and hand everyone a data chip, "I've put together a list of inoculations that the World Health Organization recommends for travelers to West Africa. Some of these things aren't in your normal medkit, so you may need to see a doctor before we leave. There's some additional information on Lagos on the chip, if you're not already familiar with the city."

Rinzler pocketed his chip, planning to read its contents later.

"To get us to Africa, I've arranged for a private flight from here to Cairo, and then on to Accra—the capital of Asante, and the closest real airport to Lagos. That way we don't have to deal with any airport security or other travel issues. But after that, I'm afraid we'll be traveling with a bush pilot into Lagos."

"What does that mean?" Digger asked.

"Means we're sneaking into the city." Icebreaker said, "We won't exactly have the local LEOs on our side if the shit hits the fan, either."

"Pretty much, not that there's much for local police there." Jane said, "Now I've been told there will be limited room on the plane for us on the final leg, and we're to pack light. A single carry-on-sized bag and a backpack or duffle bag each, or so I was told. I'd seriously recommend everyone here bring a medkit, too. Does anyone need any help arranging details before we go?"

"Got someone in mind for the shots?" Icebreaker asked.

"I know a street doctor called Butch that can help you out with that." Jane answered. "Tell her I sent you and she'll set you up."

"And this Samriel Lockwood guy?" Cyclops asked.

"Oh, yes, of course." Jane said, pulling out a physical photograph from a pocket and handing it to him.

"So, are we going to know what this item is?" Rinzler asked.

"It looks something like a cross between an armillary sphere and a navigational sextant. In the center is a sphere, and the sphere is mounted on staff, which is intricately carved with spiraling designs and glyphs." Jane answered. "I'm sorry, but I don't have a pic of it. But rest assured I'll know it when I see it."

"Our bigger focus is Samriel, right?" Cyclops asked.

"Aside from protecting me, yes." Jane answered.

"Then right now I guess we just need to know where Butch is, and when and where to meet for the flight tomorrow." Icebreaker said.


	2. Chapter 2

Are Your Immunizations Up To Date? (reposted 2015/08/07)

Jane had chartered the team a Gulfstream Luxe V, and it had been quite nicely furnished. It was also a larger model that had been designed to accommodate trolls so they would not have to duck while inside the cabin.

Despite the luxury of the jet everyone was dressed in more casual clothes. For many shadowrunners this also meant discrete body armor and maybe a few small weapons. For Rinzler this also meant an unusual piece of ornamentation in the form of a long chrome steel chain he wore about his neck. Out of everyone on the jet, only Cyclops knew that six of the links of chain were not normal, each with a thin core of orichalcum and engraved with various markings of power to define their power. One was an exceptionally powerful focus for boosting and channeling his magical power, while the other five were enchanted to hold spells for him.

And being able to walk about to stretch was also quite nice, though Cyclops needed the most space to really get in a good walk. Digger's small stature allowed her to get more than what she felt she needed after one trip back and forth down the length of the cabin. There had been a brief stop in D.C. to top off the fuel tanks, and open the door for a little bit of fresher air, and they were off again and now far over the Atlantic Ocean on their way to Cairo, Egypt.

It also looked like the flight across the ocean was going to be much like the flight across the continent, with everyone pretty much keeping to themselves. Already Rinzler could feel that there was going to be problems as he sat in his luxurious chair, legs crossed in the lotus position. Even with his eyes closed he knew quite well when Jane came over to take a seat next to him.

"Something bothering you Jane?" Rinzler asked.

"How do you do that?" Jane asked.

"Very keen senses." he replied, opening his eyes to look at her properly. "Worried about this crew you've taken on?"

"Maybe just a little."

"Cyclops and I have worked together a lot, and I'm sure you've been told we take our jobs very seriously."

"Yeah, I'll bet." Wheeler said, "So seriously that he's been glued to his 'link ever since we left SeaTac."

"Hey Cy, what've you got going on over there?" Rinzler asked.

"Reading a psychological review of the toxic shaman by Karen Remick of Montana Tech." Cyclops answered.

"Why the hell you readin' that?" Wheeler asked.

"Did you read the primer on Lagos Jane gave us?" Rinzler asked. "Lagos isn't as clean in the magical background as Seattle is, so us magic folks are going to find it a little harder to do our spells."

"And Lagos isn't as high tech, either." Jane added, "That's why I specifically asked for a hacker or two that could do more than just hack."

"And why I suppose no one here's a technomancer, either." Rinzler said.

"You have something against technomancers?" Jane asked, looking at Rinzler.

"No more than any hacker I haven't met yet."

"So what's your specialty for all of this?" Wheeler asked.

"I don't really have one, beyond experience."

"Experience?"

"I've been told that Cyclops and Rinzler have been in the shadows for some time." Jane said, "Was kinda glad I could get them."

"Managed to pull Cyclops away from his new toy, did you?" Icebreaker asked.

Rinzler slowly closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He could also feel the tension building up in Cyclops, his aura darkening and becoming prickly despite the fact he tried to keep his focus on his reading material. "You'd better be careful of what you say next."

"What's he talking about?" Jane asked.

"Something about the Yakuza losing a shipment last week, we think." Wheeler said.

"And I heard that one of the girls they lost went home with the big guy." Icebreaker added.

Cyclops's aura was beginning to prickle some more, and Jane's was starting to do the same.

"And before you say what you're thinking now," Rinzler said darkly, eyes open to carefully look at Icebreaker and Wheeler, "know that the Yakuza call us Fūjin and Raijin."

"F ūjin and Raijin?" Wheeler asked, "What's that supposed to mean?"

Already Rinzler could feel Icebreaker's tension, and he knew that their silver-tongued fellow knew the names.

"F ūjin and Raijin are two Shinto gods." Digger said, walking up to them, "Raijin, also known as Raiden, is the god of lightning, and F ūjin is the god of wind. They're often paired together in ancient Japanese myth and art."

"Wait, you're the one they call Raijin, the one that lit up that Yakuza street mage like a Christmas tree?" Icebreaker asked.

"He wished I took it that easy on him." Rinzler grimly said.

"He wished you took it that… easy… on him?" Icebreaker slowly repeated.

Digger's aura flared, intensifying briefly as she gazed at him in the astral before she said, "You don't seem to be that powerful." she said.

"I don't like advertising it."

"Maybe you should. Strut your stuff, show off…" Wheeler suggested. He stopped when Rinzler focused his gaze on the heavily cybered man.

"That you don't want me to do."

"Trust him, you don't." Cyclops added.

"So, just why are you two here?" Rinzler asked, looking between Icebreaker and Wheeler.

"I told one of the fixers I know that I was wanting to get someone who'd been to Lagos before, that knew some of the languages and such there." Jane told them.

"Well, that explains why I'm here." Icebreaker said. "I've spent some time there, learned a few of the languages of the city that you won't find in any linguasoft. And I packed plenty of meds that we're going to need."

"So you'll also be our guide around there?" Digger asked.

"Hah, not a chance." Icebreaker replied, "It's been a year or two since I've been there, and the local gangs are so constantly fighting over territory that things are changing on a daily basis. We'll want a local guide for that."

"So why'd a hacker like me get called up for such a…" Wheeler started to say.

"Primitive?" Icebreaker said, "You know we already talked about this before we left for SeaTac. Digger's the better hacker than you are. You're a damned good sneak thief, so that's why you got called for this."

Wheeler scowled. Rinzler wondered how much he had been trying to talk up his hacking skills.

"Besides hacking I know a lot of spells." Digger said, "Just none that're good in a fight." she added softly.

"Fighting isn't just about the damage you can do." Rinzler said, "What's that old saying, 'Think outside the box.'? You're smart, just be imaginative with what you can do."

* * *

><p>It was relatively the next morning when their flight touched down on a simple runway in Accra. Almost twenty hours ago they had departed SeaTac, where it was cold, dark, and rainy. Morning in Accra was quite different, and it was not just the eight hour time difference.<p>

"What time is it?" Digger asked with a groan as she pushed herself upright.

"Do you want home time or local?" Cyclops asked.

"How 'bout both?" Icebreaker asked.

"Twenty-three thirty-seven last night back home, and seven thirty-seven tomorrow morning here." Cyclops said as he pushed himself out of his chair. He was careful as he stretched his arms out, making sure he did not knock anyone over.

Jane was noticeably tired as she stood to collect her things. Digger ever looked the small child as she tried to gain her mental focus.

Cyclops and Wheeler, on the other hand, had not slept at all during the flight, and Rinzler figured that the heavily cybered human likely had a sleep regulator implant in his brain just like Cyclops did.

For Rinzler things were a little different. Like Jane and Digger, his body was free of any kind of artificial implants or genetic modifications. Unlike the women, magic helped keep him awake for longer periods of time. It was not that he used a spell to alleviate his need for sleep, but he just needed… less.

The outside air was relatively clean and clear compared to Seattle, and substantially warmer. The Accra airport was also substantially simpler than SeaTac, with only a few terminal buildings which were all a single story tall. Though quite quaint compared to the Seattle sprawl, the Accra airport looked like it was well maintained, and even the astral felt less oppressive here than in Seattle, something that Rinzler found to be refreshing.

After collecting what luggage they had the six of them went into the terminal. Four heavily armed guards stood watch while another from airport security checked over their digital travel documents, the auras of all of them prickly with suspicion and restrained mild hostility towards them. Rinzler could feel a bit of impatience starting to come off of the fomori just before they were suddenly given the okay to proceed into the Intra-Continental Waiting Area.

Their next gate was easy enough to find, with a sign that read "LAGOS" nailed over the doorway. Next to it was a desk that looked like had been taken from an office, and a very bored guard.

"Going to Lagos?" he asked in English.

Jane nodded.

"There's a travel tax for each of you.

Jane sighed. Turning to them she said, "I'll take care of this. Go ahead and see if you can find our pilot. Goes by the name Innocent Dobiri. He's supposed to be waiting for us here. Tell him Black Mamba vouched for us."

"You sure you'll be okay?" Cyclops asked.

"Quite. Just go and find our pilot."

Icebreaker led the way as they walked on through, and outside again onto a private runway. Parked there was what looked like a small airplane. At least it looked like an airplane. It had a pair of wings, each with what was maybe an engine, a rudder, and a long and slender body.

Leaning against the airplane, next to an open door, was a rail thin African man. His head was nearly clean shaven and glistened with just a hint of sweat, and running the length of an otherwise healthy looking aura were a collection of cybernetics implanted along his spine. In his mouth was the stub of a still smoldering cigarette, his lungs showing only a slight taint of his smoking habit.

"Is that it?" Icebreaker asked as they walked up to it.

"Who are you?" the African man asked, pushing himself away from the aircraft.

"Well, if you're Innocent Dobiri then we're your fare." Icebreaker said, dropping his duffel bag to free a hand to shake. When the other man did not reciprocate, Icebreaker added, "Yeah, well, ah, Black Mamba's vouching for us."

They were looked over very carefully. "Good, you pack light. Big one gets in first."

"So you are Innocent Dobiri?" Icebreaker asked.

"Yes."

"And you expect us to ride in that… rust bucket?" Wheeler asked.

"Don't worry. I'm best pilot in Lagos. Rust is camouflage."

"You're seriously serious?" Icebreaker asked.

"You see any other aircraft out here for us?" Cyclops asked as he walked over to the aircraft. There were a collection of boxes stacked up to be a makeshift staircase to climb inside, and the first crate creaked as Cyclops put his foot down on it.

"Why do I feel like I should've packed a parachute?" Digger asked.

"If you want to hike to Lagos, be my guest." Cyclops said as he climbed into the aircraft, the door just wide enough for his curling horns.

"Okay, you can get in next." Wheeler said, looking at Rinzler. Already Digger was climbing up into the airplane.

"No, you." Rinzler told him. "I don't care fast you think you are because if you do try anything I will crack that ceramic laced skull of yours over my knee and throw you into that plane like a sack of soybeans, and maybe if I'm feeling gracious I'll convince Digger to heal you after we're well over the African jungle."

"Hey, um, Wheeler, I think we oughta get onboard." Icebreaker said.

Wheeler looked down at Rinzler's feet, then back up with the biggest grin imaginable. He glanced over at Icebreaker, chuckling though Icebreaker did not seem to share in the amusement. Rinzler could see a few spikes appearing in the other man's aura, twisting and coiling in a way that made him think of a pit viper.

Wheeler's sucker punch was quick, but Rinzler was already expecting something. In the blink of an eye Rinzler had caught Wheeler's fist in the palm of his hand, fingers clamped down like a steel trap.

Now Rinzler did not look like much of a strong man though his body was toned and in shape, and the wiry Wheeler's body belied his strength for speed, not only in body but his choice of implants as well. Against Rinzler that speed was nearly meaningless when he knew an attack was coming.

"C'mon Wheeler, quit fucking around." Icebreaker hissed as Wheeler struggled to pull his hand free. "The client's coming."

"Or maybe we can just leave you here and split your pay between the four of us." Rinzler suggested, easing his grip just a little. With a good yank Wheeler was able to pull himself free. Scowling the cybered human grabbed his bag and climbed into the airplane.

"Hey, I'm sorry about that," Icebreaker started to say.

"Save it, I'm sure he's got his good points and all." Rinzler said.

"Ah hah." Icebreaker nodded before he too climbed onboard.

"Everything alright?" Jane asked.

"Nothing you need to worry about." Rinzler said, turning to look at Jane.

"Alright then." she said, nodding to Rinzler before she climbed in.

"We almost set." Innocent said as he walked back to the one door.

"Right, time to get going." Rinzler said as he went in next.

It was quite cramped inside the airplane, and all most everyone had to sit on were various wooden crates. There were two chairs, but they were in the cockpit at the very front. Rinzler found himself a crate to sit on, setting his backpack just beside him.

Instead of taking one of the seats at the front Jane chose a crate next to Rinzler, stowing her own backpack behind her legs.

"Uh, you sure you don't want a more comfortable seat?" Icbreaker asked.

Innocent had climbed and was now securing the door as Jane said, "I'm not some soft corp brat, you know. I can take it."

Engines sputtered loudly, propellers whirring horrendously, and the whole aircraft seemed to vibrate as it came alive. If Innocent had not spoken so confidently about his airplane Rinzler would have wondered if it would shake itself apart.

"Hey, um, just how old's this thing anyway?" Wheeler asked as the aircraft taxied to a runway.

"You have heard of the term 'fly-by-wire,' right?" Digger asked.

"Yeah, but I don't think this one's new enough for that." Wheeler replied.

"Trust me, it is." Digger yelled as the engines roared, the aircraft lurching forward as it sped down the runway. "See, it's not really electrical wires but steel cables that connect the controls to the wings so he can operate this tin can!"

Cyclops chuckled and Rinzler grinned as Wheeler paled, the airplane pushing up beneath them as it took flight. Rinzler took a deep breath and closed his eyes, hoping to relax a little this flight.

"Hey, um, how come we're flying inland? Isn't Lagos the other way?" Wheeler asked.

Again Cyclops chuckled. "Spent all your life in the sprawl?" he asked.

"What's that got to do with it?"

"Bush pilots and… other sorts take different flight paths." Rinzler said, "The best ones don't flight the same routes everyone else does. They fly twisting paths and below the radar to avoid detection."

"Why bother? Things are so primitive here. I mean, I've got no matrix signal at all." Wheeler said.

"And one radar guided surface-to-air missile up your ass will prove it ain't all that 'low tech' around here." Cyclops said gruffly. "Try to enjoy the view while you can."

Rinzler felt no particular urge to watch the jungle pass by beneath them. Looking through a window would have given him only a glimpse at the wild beauty of nature, and missing out of the astral beauty to him would be like a regular person looking at a rainbow in grayscale.

After a somewhat bumpy flight, and an equally bumpy landing, the aircraft taxied to its destination at what qualified as an airport in Lagos. Of everyone, Cyclops was the last to deplane.

Rinzler's first breath of fresh air outside of the aircraft was not all that far from what he expected. Though it may have lacked the tang and pollutants that were ever present in Seattle, Lagos had a different kind of stench that lay hidden in the air. For the moment he could not decide which was worse.

The airport itself, Murtala Muhammed International according to what data he had, looked like it had seen better days. Its two runways, both running straight north to south, looked like they were in need of some repair, but nothing compared to the buildings themselves. The buildings may have once been a sprawling facility, complete with four walls and a roof, but now looked like they would be the last choice of the homeless to squat in. Even in the astral there was a depressive feeling about the place, and it was more than just emotional. Or maybe it was all emotional. Whatever it was Rinzler could feel that drawing upon his magic was going to take a little more work if he did not prepare for it first.

"This place reeks." Wheeler said aloud.

"Yeah, but nothing compared to the Tacoma Aroma." Icebreaker said, slinging his own pack on. "Here it's more automobile exhaust, garbage, and shit."

"Didn't do your reading, did you?" Cyclops asked.

"What're you talking about shit?" Wheeler asked.

"Shit, that brown stuff that comes out of your backside." Icebreaker said, "For many there's no plumbing, so when they take a shit they go squat in the river."

Wheeler looked completely disgusted.

"C'mon, we need to get going." Jane told them.

Rinzler kept watch more on the buildings as they walked by them, figuring many should be torn down if not marked condemned. Some had large sections of wall missing, which did facilitate the movement of people in and out of them. Inside were merchants and vendors, most with tarps over their stalls to help protect their merchandise from the holes or complete lack of roofing above them.

There was also an odd kind of natural beauty as well that Rinzler noticed. Covering some places inside the buildings was a colorful mosaic of red, black, and green molds, some tinted with a reddish dust that was rather thick in some places on the floor. Through the astral he could also see a swirling mix of various blues from the molds in general.

"I think we got trouble." Wheeler said as he and the others stopped.

Slowly Rinzler turned his head to look at what Wheeler was talking about. Heading their way was a collection of ork men, their grins and the way they carried themselves stinking of impending trouble, let alone their armored fatigues, dark sunglasses, and scarred faces.

"Airport security." Jane said softly, "Looking for a bribe."

"AK-97s." Cyclops added, speaking softly as well. Rinzler noticed that most of them had a second magazine taped to the one loaded in the assault rifle, remembering several trids where people did that so all they had to do was flip the magazine around to reload the gun.

There were ten in all, with one clearly walking ahead of the others. He was either the group's spokesman, or more likely just the leader by virtue of being the toughest piece of shit among them. The auras of each of them were blood red and prickly.

"You new?" the lead ork asked in accented English, staring straight at Icebreaker.

"Well, yeah, sort of." Icebreaker said as he stepped up to stand at Cyclops's right, not missing a beat or that they were ignoring Jane entirely. Of course, how would they even know who the person in charge was?

"There's an arrival tax." the spokesman said, "You pay, or you cannot enter."

"Arrival tax?" Digger asked. "What kind of crap is that?"

One of the other orks spat on the ground.

Slowly Rinzler walked around to Icebreaker's right so he and Cyclops would be flanking him.

"Well, sure, I guess." Icebreaker said, "Just how much is this arrival tax?"

"One hundred nuyen, each." the spokesman said.

"Really? That much?" Icebreaker asked.

Rinzler remembered the data file Jane had given them, which among other things had included a listing on the values of goods and services, including bribes. It had also included other little details, like how Lagos was a city that ran on the flow of its currency, where the local thugs expected all foreigners to be infinitely wealthy and willing to pay exorbitant prices. Until he had gotten a good feel of what the local currency was really worth Rinzler thought it best to spend as little as possible.

And apparently so did Icebreaker.

"Yes." the spokesman said. He looked like he was expecting the six of them to simply pay up.

"Well, you see we're traveling on a budget. We're not the richest of _oyibos_, and one hundred's just a bit much for us."

The spokesman grunted. "All _oyibos_ are wealthy." he said with the conviction of someone blinded by faith.

"Then all Lagosians are thieves." Cyclops replied, his voice even.

One of the orks was quite well provoked, and slammed the butt of his assault rifle into the fomori's stomach.

Cyclops slowly turned his head to look down at the sweating, black skinned ork, shaking his head just a little in a very disapproving way, the look that an upset mother could give to silently discipline her child.

"Awe, now you've gone and upset my large friend here." Icebreaker sweetly said as the ork slowly took three steps away from Cyclops. "Now I really doubt you want to fight us, so let's try to talk deal, okay?"

Rinzler did not need to look at Cyclops to feel the activation of the three enchanted rings he wore on his left middle finger, along with the sudden blue glow at his chest from the power focus he wore about his neck. He reached up as if to play with the chain links that hung about his own neck, activating one of the foci that were part of it, shaping a spell to speed his reactions to place into it.

"Deal? No, no deal." the spokesman said.

"How 'bout we don't pay you anything?" suggested Wheeler.

The spokesman said something, which aggravated the other orks around him. Rinzler could see the blood red spikes growing in their auras, knowing they were growing quite upset now.

Cyclops turned to glare at Wheeler, and thinking he had the advantage the ork that had struck Cyclops before did so again. This time the butt of his AK-97 came high into Cyclops's blindside to try and strike him in the face. Rinzler grinned when Cyclops had a hand up to catch the assault rifle's butt with a loud crack. The fomori held the rifle fast, slowly turning his head back to look down at the smaller ork, and sighed. Already Rinzler could see the red spikes blunt and twist, turning to fat ribbons of yellow that swirled about. Several of the others had the same happening to their auras as well.

"Now c'mon, let's be reasonable." Icebreaker said. "We really don't wanna fight you, and I really doubt you want to have to visit a _dibias_ to get yourselves fixed up."

All it took from Cyclops was a twist of the hand to reef from AK-97 from the ork's hands. Taking it in both hands, one at the stock and the other at the barrel just before the front sight, he started to bend it. Rinzler knew that several of the orks could hear the creaking of the wooden stock as it started to break. Worse still it did not look like Cyclops was really straining at all to do this.

"Oh, and I guess I shouldn't forget how much you'll have to spend on new guns, too." Icebreaker casually added. Cyclops took this as a cue to ease up the pressure on the AK-97, but still he held it firmly in both hands.

"So what do you say, five nuyen?" Icebreaker asked.

The spokesman ork's eyes went wide, the sclera a striking contrast to his very dark skin. "Fifty!" he said, already cutting their first asking price in half.

Icebreaker shook his head. "Ten."

"Thirty-five."

"Fifteen."

The ork groaned. "Twenty."

"Twenty." agreed Icebreaker.

Cyclops handed the AK-97 back to its owner, stock first, who accepted it a little nervously.

Payment was simple enough, as the orks all had active commlinks.

"Right, everything good?" Icebreaker asked.

The ork spokesman reluctantly nodded.

Rinzler felt the power from Cyclops's foci disappear, and so he also deactivated the one that held his spell, its power dissipating a little bit faster than normal.

"Right then, we'll, ah, just be on our way then."

After several paces had separated them from the airport security, Wheeler asked, "So why pay those assholes anything?"

"Money runs this place." Icebreaker said.

"Money also runs Seattle." Wheeler retorted.

"No, seriously, money runs this place." Icebreaker said again, "Everyone's got their hand out for their share for whatever they do. It's way different here."

"Like how?"

"You'll learn soon enough." interrupted Jane. "Now follow me. It's time to get your per diem."


	3. Chapter 3

Welcome To Lagos, Part 1 (reposted 2015/08/07)

"E káàró." the man said as Rinzler and the others walked into the hawala booth. He was a wringled ebony-skinned human with a cap of tightly curled gray hair. He wore what Rinzler took for traditional African tribal robes, and sat behind a makeshift desk.

The hawala booth was not really built for someone of Cyclops's size, either. He had to duck through the doorway, and even standing upright was a challenge in making sure his curling horns did not snag on anything. He felt quite cramped, especially with Jane and the others in very close confines.

"E káàrò." Jane replied, handing him a slip of paper.

As the man read the note, Jane turned to them and said, "Your per diem–five days at two hundred, fifty nuyen per day–has been deposited in the hawala system here. You can withdraw all or some of it now. You'll want to carry some, ah," she paused, thinking, before continuing, "ah, currency, with you. Out in the city, most people won't take electronic cred."

The hawala nodded. "I see you each have a deposit of twelve hundred, fifty nuyen on account. That is equal to, hm… twenty-five thousand naira. I can give you all of this, or if you wish to leave some on deposit, any other hawala in the city can release your funds to you. I'll give you a marker to show them, which will include your remaining account balance."

"Just how much are you thinking we should have on hand?" Wheeler asked.

"Well, just how easy is it to find other hawalas around here?" Icebreaker asked back.

"There are many, but getting to one could be difficult, depending on whose territory you need to pass through." the hawala said.

"And, ah, how much does it cost us to get naira?" Icebreaker asked.

"Nothing at all." the hawala answered, "It costs if you want to get nuyen back, but nothing at all for naira."

"Then tell us everything we need to know and I'll take all of mine." Cyclops said.

Each of them got a marker, a voucher of their account within the hawala system, as well as numerous tokens. Each token was different, bits of shell, bone, and even carved rocks were used. One side was decorated with an animal of some sort, like a hippo or lion, which denoted the value of the token. The other side was the personal symbol of a hawala in the network.

With their lodging several kilometers away, they all purchased a seat on a danfo, a kind of bus. The driver looked a little nervous as he asked for twice as much from Cyclops as he did the others, but Cyclops paid it without question. The fomori knew he was bigger than most everyone in the city, and was okay with it as long as no one tried to be belittling to him about it.

Their destination was the Porto Novo Luxury Hotel, south in the Apapa district. The district itself could almost be mistaken for Downtown Seattle, with the various restaurants, bars, markets, and such all crammed next to each other along the main thoroughfares. That was, of course, if you were able to ignore the dust, pollution (which stank worse than the Tacoma Aroma), and the overall outdated look of virtually everything.

But there was more to Apapa that could not be seen. Magic was much more pervasive in Lagos than in Seattle, and as mana was something much more fluid and dynamic than most mundane could accept there were places in Lagos where it pooled and collected. Apapa was no exception, and Rinzler could more than feel the mana pushing against him. It was only a little right now, but he was concerned that it could be worse later.

The Porto Novo "Luxury Hotel" had virtually nothing to do with luxury at all, unless it was compared to the slums Rinzler saw on the way there. The building was five stories tall, with windows on the upper three only, U-shaped around a central courtyard, and made from cinderblocks that might have once been whitewashed but were now a uniform red from the pervasive dust that coated everything in Lagos. The gate to get to the hotel itself looked quite sturdy, and behind it patrolling the courtyard were several thugs toting assault rifles, significantly higher quality than the AK-97s that Rinzler had seen.

But the armed and armored thugs were not the only ones outside. About half a dozen boys sat at the front steps, chatting away about something that Rinzler could not understand. The boys looked at them, but otherwise largely ignored them as they walked by.

Inside was slightly cooler for the shade. Rinzler noticed more armed guards walking the hallways. At least the place was large enough for Cyclops to walk without being hunched over, short of occasionally having to duck through a doorway.

After Jane spoke with the manager they were led up the stairs to the fourth floor to their rooms. There was an elevator, but it apparently had not worked in many, many years.

"Here are your room." the manager said, pushing open the door for them.

The room itself was relatively spacious, though Rinzler noticed that the one room was co-ed with half a dozen beds. Against one wall were worn privacy screens which could be set up to divide the room up and give the women their own space. On one of those beds Rinzler clearly saw the aura of a very large chameleon-like lizard, almost a meter in length, lying close to the foot. It only took one look for him to realize that the lizard was dual natured, knowing they were there even though it had its eyes shut.

"End of hallway is toilet." the manager told them.

"And showers?" Digger asked.

"No running water." the manager answered. "But, every room, high class, yes? No _iba_ here."

Digger shrieked, and Rinzler noticed the green and yellow aura of a brownish-black cockroach as it scuttled out from underneath a bed, the insect almost large enough for the gnome to ride.

The chameleon-like lizard lashed out an incredibly long pink tongue to snag the insect. The recoil was so quick that to blink was to miss the strike entirely, with the only evidence a crunching sound from the lizard as it ate.

"See? No insects!" the manager said happily.

"Yes, thank you." Jane dryly replied.

"Anything you need, just ask." the manager told them, "I get you bottled beer or soft drinks. Extra charge."

"We'll let you know." Jane told him, apparently being as polite as she could in ushering the excited manager out the door.

"Just how the hell did that overgrown gecko do that?" asked Wheeler.

"It's called a gomatia. It's an awakened chameleon." Jane answered. She sighed as she looked about the room. "Charming, eh? But I've been told it's the safest place to stay outside the Island, and we don't have the budget to go there."

"What're we looking at if we did?" asked Icebreaker.

"A thousand nuyen a night." Jane answered, "Anyway, I've got some calls to make and I need to check in with my employer. After that… well, I guess we should get started. Give me fifteen minutes and we can go. First things first, I can already tell I didn't bring enough ammo for my Predator."

"I probably should pick up an extra case or two of ammo, too." Cyclops said, walking over to one of the larger looking beds and dropping his pack onto it. "But just how obvious should we be here?" he asked as he looked at the bed, and the one that sat next to it."

"Saw plenty of the gang types wearing armor like it's nothing." Icebreaker said.

"Right." Cyclops said, walking over to the other bed. He crouched down a little and pushed it over to his.

"So I guess we prep for a night in Redmond." Rinzler said.

"What's that mean?" Wheeler asked as Cyclops pulled out a long armored jacket.

"Means that our big friend here's gonna look the part of the muscle." Icebreaker said, "And unlike Downtown Seattle he's gonna fit right in like that."

"That's not all." Cyclops said as he pulled out the weapons he had packed as well.

First of which was a massive Ruger Super Warhawk, and massive in that it had been heavily modified not only to fit his larger hands but in that in every way it was larger than any off-the-shelf model. The large revolver was in a holster and gun belt, which Cyclops strapped on with the gun at his left hip.

Next was a matched pair of Eichiro Hatamoto II shotgun pistols with hidden arm slides. These he strapped onto his forearms.

"Just how many guns are you packing?" asked Wheeler as he walked over to another bed and dropped his backpack onto it.

"Just the three." Cyclops said as he pulled out the last weapon he had packed.

"Whoa, that's bigger than me." commented Digger as out came a single headed battle axe. Cyclops pulled the sheath off to inspect the blade.

"You think you're gonna need that?" asked Icebreaker. "I mean, you're gonna stand out with that thing on you."

"I look like a big white troll." Cyclops said, sheathing his axe blade, "I think I'm gonna stand out here no matter what." He hooked the axe onto his gun belt at his right side, leaving the sheath over the blade. "I don't know about you guys, but I'm gonna wait by the entrance." he told the others.

"What's the big deal about an axe?" Wheeler asked as he checked his own two Predators.

"Someone once suggested that he join the Spikes to work with BTO." Rinzler said, "That came after that someone saw Cyclops bury that axe's head into the engine block of a Nissan Jackrabbit, and almost got the axe turned on him. Cyclops isn't the person that can blindly hate someone because of what they are."

"And even though Lord Torgo's been dead a year there's still plenty of Spikes that hate the Ancients just because." Icebreaker added.

"Still not getting it." Wheeler said as he holstered his Predators.

"Rumor is that BTO stands for 'Babe The Ox.'" Icebreaker said, "And from what I've heard that Cyclops can do with an axe it'd make him Paul Bunyan, or PB."

"And a lumberjack he isn't." Rinzler added.

"Speaking of the devil, I just got a text from him." Icebreaker announced, "Says there's a guy on this floor named Peaceful. Suggests we each give him a parrot naira so he'll watch our stuff."

"How much is that?" Wheeler asked.

"A hundred naira, or about five nuyen." Digger said.

After everyone had claimed a bed, though Rinzler more or less claimed a spot instead, they headed back out after Cyclops. They each tossed Peaceful a 100 naira token on the way.

They found the fomori just outside, his size enrapturing the boys just before he pulled out a naira token marked with a monkey.

"Making friends?" Icebreaker asked as they walked up.

"We want a local guide, right?" Cyclops asked them.

"I'm sure we can get the others to chip in." Icebreaker said, pulling out similarly marked naira token.

"Right, so, who here speaks English?" Cyclops asked.

Three boys raised their hand.

"You there." Icebreaker said, pointing to who was probably the cleanest looking of the three.

The boy promptly stood and took two steps forward. He was human, with short curly hair, and barely half as tall as Cyclops.

"You have a name?" Icebreaker asked.

"Udo." the boy said.

"Right, everyone pitch in for our guide." Icebreaker said.

Rinzler and the others did, though Wheeler looked disgruntled at the idea of paying someone else already. Icebreaker and Cyclops, however, both pocketed their naira tokens instead of giving them to Udo, who looked at them hurt and expectantly.

"You get the rest when we get back here tonight." Icebreaker said, "And if you're a good boy, we'll pay you more each day you're guiding us."

The boy's brown eyes went wide. He eagerly nodded.

"Now, as I recall the closest place we could buy ammo at is the Leventis Store." Icebreaker said.

"Sounds like a good start." Jane said.

"Can we walk?" Cyclops asked.

"If you hated the bus, we could always take one of those motorcycles." Wheeler suggested, pointing at the street as three mismatched motorcycles, each with a passenger, zipped by.

"This way!" Udo said excitedly.

"Think one could even move with me sitting on it?" Cyclops asked back.

They were called okada, a narrow motorcycle modified to be a one-person taxi. They had already seen dozens of them weaving about through the congested streets. So far Rinzler had not seen a single troll, or similarly large metatype, riding one.

"Too bad a cab's more expensive." Icebreaker said, "Looks like we're walking."

"Isn't there a car rental anywhere?" Wheeler asked as they started walking.

"Rental?" Icebreaker asked back, chuckling. "We might get lucky and be able to buy or steal a car, but renting's not an option."

Walking was not too bad to Cyclops. Even Udo did not complain about walking.

They did not take the main road to the Leventis Store. There really was no 'main road' or special way for tourists, especially since Lagos was not exactly known to be a tourist destination. Even in the Apapa district the wireless coverage was more of an ad-hoc mesh network than any serious network. Icebreaker had also suggested that everyone try to keep from using their commlinks, or be harassed by a local for a toll for using their wireless network.

After a while of walking they had come to the conclusion that traffic in Lagos was much worse than Seattle, including the rougher roads of Redmond or Puyallup or the congestion of Downtown. The final decision came when they came across yet another traffic jam, this one with a group of men harassing the passengers of an old yellow bus.

Already Rinzler could feel the edginess in Cyclops and Jane, that they wanted to intervene on behalf of the bus, but then there was also the chance that the driver was behind in paying off the local gang for the right to drive through their territory.

"I don't like this." Digger said softly.

"No one says you have to." Icebreaker said, sounding not too happy himself.

Cyclops glanced back at the others.

A girl cried out, drawing Cyclops's attention back to the bus. She ran towards them, weaving between the stopped cars and trucks with two men behind her. They stopped as she got close, one of the men catching up to her and grabbing her long hair. One good yank and she was off her feet, and with his free hand he punched her in the face.

"That's it." Jane muttered, drawing her Predator.

"Shit." Cyclops cursed. More of the men were heading their way, all carrying AK-97s in their hands, and Rinzler could sense the hostility in their auras, spikes pulsing with their racing heartbeats. "Ice, get the girl." he said as he advanced on the two men before them.

"Digger, remember what I said on the flight here." Rinzler said as he touched the heavy chain about his neck, activating two of the spell holding foci among them, "Use what you know to help protect them." he added as he worked one spell to enhance his reaction again, and an illusion spell to camouflage him from eyes and cameras alike.

"Hey!" Cyclops barked, drawing their attention away from the girl as he advanced on them. Jane shot off a single round, the slug tearing away a chunk of one man's face. The other fumbled with his AK-97, the assault rifle clattering to the ground just before Cyclops's fist slammed into his face.

Rinzler darted out into the mix of stopped cars, watching off to the side as Icebreaker rushed up to Cyclops just as the fomori hefted the two black men and tossed them aside like rag dolls.

"Down!" Cyclops yelled, dropping to the ground just as three men aimed their AK-97s at them. Gunshots rang out, bullets whizzing over their heads as people screamed and ran in terror. Glancing back Rinzler saw that Digger did have something to contribute after all in the form of a physical barrier spell that rippled as a few slugs struck it. It proved to be more than strong enough to withstand the punishment.

Rinzler could feel a shift in the mana as he worked his way around the cars, a chill that soon surrounded Cyclops. The sky blue outline of a wolf's head covered Cyclops's head like a spiritual helm, chilling blue lines of power flowing down like windblown snow. On one leg the fomori leapt into the air, flying what normally would have been an impossible distance over two cars to come crashing down next to one of the press gangers. Stunned, the man barely had time to realize just how imposing Cyclops was, and not even enough to comprehend how he had made such a jump before a casual backhand slap sent him reeling.

Two more press gangers, a human and an ork, leveled their AK-97s on Cyclops just as Rinzler got around another car, opening fire on him. Shell casings flew as their guns roared, and Cyclops calmly stood as the slugs bounced off his body. Heedless of the bullets he drew his axe and rushed them. Try as they might the two press gangers could not stop Cyclops. The fomori swung his axe relatively low, catching the ork squarely in the chest, the blade digging deep enough to shear through several ribs at once. Cyclops made it look easy as he ripped his axe free.

Rinzler watched as he positioned himself. He knew Cyclops's style, that he was a more direct and front line fighter even though Rinzler could do almost as well. No, Rinzler's tactic in this was to flank the opposition while they were distracted with the spiritually empowered fomori, and he smiled as the press ganger tried to use his AK-97 to block Cyclops's downward stroke. The axe did more to smash through the rifle rather than smoothly cut it, and it was not slowed in the least when it reached the man's chest.

Other press gangers yelled at Cyclops, the words completely alien to Rinzler though the base meaning was clearer in their prickly red auras as yellow ribbons began to wrap around them. Cyclops's response, though wordless, easily transcended language barriers as he glared at them. So too did the press ganger's posture as they held their assault rifles on the people they had pulled from the old yellow bus.

Rinzler held himself where he was, looking at the press gangers to see who he could hit with a spell. The problem he had was that he could get one, maybe two, before the others shot innocent people in the back.

"I hacked their guns!" Digger yelled, "Hit them now!"

Rinzler did not act right away, and neither did Cyclops. The fomori brought his right hand back, axe at the ready, while his left hand came up to take a stereotypical warrior's pose just before an attack. This made the press gangers even more nervous, yellow nearly flooding their auras now, and they yelled again very loudly as Cyclops moved to set himself up an attack. Even Rinzler could see it, the press gangers had lined themselves up, and Cyclops was going to take full advantage of it.

"What're you waiting for?" Wheeler yelled.

"_Push!_" Cyclops yelled, and Rinzler saw the blast of magic as the fomori unleashed a forceful blast at the closest press ganger. All three of them were caught off guard, the first one being bowled over by the force of the spell and falling into the other two. They fell over like dominos. The wolf spirit and Cyclops both grinned.

Bus passengers ran, and the press gangers scrambled to their feet as Cyclops charged them. Two of them managed to take off running.

The one press ganger that had taken the brunt of the spell slowly stood, and thinking that Cyclops should not have all of the fun Rinzler acted. He held up a hand, drawing in power at his shoulder to run down the full length of his arm, mana crackling to lightning before he unleashed the electrical bolt. The red lightning bolt was far from concealed by his illusion spell, and it was too much for the ganger to take as he stumbled into the side of the bus, static bolts crackling and discharging from him as he fell.

"Ice, are there others?" Cyclops asked as Jane and Icebreaker walked up to him.

"They ran off." Icebreaker replied. The others were now just behind him and Jane as they walked up. Quietly Rinzler walked over to them, deactivating his foci with a thought. He also saw the spiritual ice wolf surrounding Cyclops disappear.

"What the hell were you thinking?" Jane sternly asked, only now holstering her Predator. She almost looked surprised to see Rinzler appear.

"You're crazy, you know that, right?" Digger asked as she jogged up to them.

"Ah, maybe we can discuss this on the way out of here?" Icebreaker suggested. "Those boys are gonna be back with backup, and maybe a few spellslingers of their own."

"Even our own magic can only go so far." Rinzler said.

"Udo!" Cyclops yelled, waving the boy their way.

It was almost surprising that the young boy had not run off with the first gunshots. Rinzler had to remind himself that this was not Seattle, that kind of violence was not the exception but the norm for Lagos.

"Right, we'll talk on the way." Jane sourly said.

"This way!" Udo cried excitedly, leading them off in a new direction.


	4. Chapter 4

**The first three chapters have been rewritten. If you've read them previously I strongly advise rereading them before continuing on with this chapter!**

* * *

><p>Welcome To Lagos, Part 2 (updated 201508/13)

"How hard can it be to find a Caucasian elf from the Tir in this city?" Jane asked aloud, more to herself than to anyone in particular.

"Apparently a lot harder than we thought." remarked Icebreaker.

There had been very few elves in the marketplace, and none that they had found were even Caucasian.

Jane sighed. "Well, maybe you could try finding Kayin. I don't know much about this Kayin, except that he's involved in some of the black market antiquities that come in through the port."

Cyclops frowned.

"I don't like this idea." Rinzler commented.

"Relax, I'll stay in the market area where it's safer for foreigners. Besides, Kayin's also a hawala and a black market dealer, which supposedly means he's trustworthy. If you find him, show him the photo. If this Samriel is looking for antiquities, he may have spoken to Kayin. Tell Kayin you got his name from Elijah; he'll be more inclined to help. Elijah's an acquaintance of mine, and told me Kayin was the guy to see about stolen antiquities coming into Lagos. It's worth a shot, at least.

"I'll stay and call a few of my contacts. Keep me up to date on what you find."

It was not all that hard to find the hawala shop, especially since it was located at the southern entrance to the Leventis Market.

Trolls and the sort apparently were not really considered as Cyclops ducked through the doorway, but at least the shop was more than high enough inside once he was through.

"Good afternoon." a tall, older looking black man clad in colorful robes said as they entered.

The spacious shop had a variety of goods for sale, with small statues, masks, and other things that looked ancient. On the back wall was a sign listing the hawala's rates, and at the corners of the square shop were well muscled guards armed with the firearm of choice in Lagos: AK-97s. The smell of incense prevailed throughout, though to Rinzler it was almost overpowering. Still it was a welcomed change to what he had to smell outside.

"Are you looking for a souvenir of your trip to Lagos? Or perhaps you need a hawala?" the man asked.

"Kayin?" Icebreaker asked.

The man seemed to react to the name, but Rinzler noticed the guards did as well, their auras laced with orange prickles.

"We got your name from Elijah." Icebreaker continued, "Said you might be able to help us find an elf looking for some antiquities." He pulled out the photograph of Samriel, holding it up for Kayin to see.

Kayin did more than just give the photograph a cursory glance. "Hmm. I have not seen the man. But… you say you know Elijah?"

Icebreaker simply nodded.

"The professor is always looking for interesting artifacts–the real deal, hmm? Is this elf interested in the artifact trade too?" Kayin asked.

"So we're told." Icebreaker said, smoothly slipping the photograph back into whatever pocket he pulled it from.

"If he is… rumors are there is a lot of _oyibos_ in town for Adegoke's big auction."

"Who's big auction?" Digger asked.

"Adegoke." Kayin said, "He's the Oni–you might say, King–of the Yoruba. He is hosting a big auction later this week. It is supposed to be a big deal, lots of artifacts and antiquities. Some of the biggest players are in town for it. The Apep Consortium, Aztechnology, lots of big players. I've heard–this is rumor–there's a group of elves in town too. Come all the way from Tir Tairngire, so they say, but can you imagine?"

"Tir elves here?" Icebreaker asked.

Kayin nodded. "Perhaps your man is with them? I just so happen to have a few connections at the Oni's palace. I could arrange introductions… for a price."

Wheeler scowled.

"Maybe we can negotiate that price?" Icebreaker suggested.

"What you want is no small favor, and what I ask will be no small task." Kayin said, "A client of mine has been in need of a particular iron mask from a home inside the Surulere district."

"Why not send your own people in to get it?" Wheeler asked, "You got the muscle."

"It is not as simple as you _oyibos_ think." Kayin replied, "Surulere is cursed. No sane person will go there no matter what. A Yoruba running for his very life from Area Boys will never enter Surulere if it will save him his life, for to do so could damn his soul to Hell."

"So you're asking us to go get this mask 'cause you people are too…" Wheeler started to say, stopping when Digger kicked him in the shin. Rinzler was glad he did shut up as even he knew that it would do more harm than anything to insult the locals about their superstitions, superstitions that might actually be grounded in some form of truth.

"Got a map?" Cyclops asked.

Cyclops tapped his head, "Implanted commlink and a Globetrotter orientation system."

"I tell you this for free," Kayin said as he rolled out the map, placing something heavy at the corners, "be careful using such things."

"And why's that?" asked Icebreaker, stepping over to get a better look at the map.

"Corporations pay much naira for technomancers." Kayin said, "Area Boys do whatever they can to bring someone who they think uses the matrix by thought alone."

"Yeah, but we're not technomancers," Wheeler said, "we've got the gear implanted."

Kayin chuckled as he anchored the last corner. "You _oyibos_ know nothing." he said, looking up at Stringer directly. "This is not Seattle or Atlanta or New York, where every street corner has doctor to implant whatever technology you want. There are very few doctors in Lagos to do such work, and even fewer who can afford such a luxury. If an Area Boy believes you are using the matrix without an augmented reality interface, then you are a technomancer pure and simple."

"So it's that obvious if you're using AR around here?" Icebreaker asked.

"Glasses and gloves, yes." Kayin replied.

"Can't say I've seen any locals here with any kind of implants." Rinzler told them, "And I'm pretty good at reading auras."

"Just how good are you?" Wheeler asked.

Rinzler looked the cybered man up and down once. "Your reaction enhancers and wires are fitted, but the skillwire system running throughout your body is more tailor made for you." he said, "And your hand razors almost blend in with the bones in your hands."

"So, you can enter Surulere here, close to the Market." Kayin said, pointing to a particular spot on the map, "But the mask is in this area," and his finger touched a spot in what Rinzler guessed was the northwestern quadrant of the Surulere district, "and somewhere along here," his finger went to the northern border, "you should be able to enter."

"So we've gotta go up and around?" Wheeler asked. "I still think it'd be easier going straight up from here." and his finger touched the first spot Kayin had indicated.

"Don't berate the locals. They're not as ignorant as you think they are." Cyclops advised, studying the map. "Bring Udo in so he can see the map."

Digger left the hawala.

"The boy will not take you to the mask." Kayin said.

"He doesn't have to." Cyclops replied, his one eye glancing up from the map to gaze upon Kayin. "All he has to do is guide us to here," his finger touching the northern border where Kayin's had been, "with as little trouble from the locals as possible and we will enter Surulere without him."

* * *

><p>It had taken a lot longer than any of them had expected to get into Surulere from the north, the sun casting long shadows as it retreated far to the west. Digger had conjured up a spirit of her own to track down Jane and inform her of what was going on, and to bring back any message she had for them.<p>

Rinzler had never really thought about what a modern abandoned city looked like, and while much of Lagos just about gave that look with a real lack of infrastructure towards maintenance, the Surulere district was truly abandoned. The streets were cracked and crumbling as weeds and tree roots pushed their way underneath and buildings were truly crumbling from neglect.

It all happened sixty years ago when VITAS (Virally Induced Toxic Allergy Syndrome) first appeared in New Delhi, India, sweeping the globe at an impossible rate. In roughly two years the global population had been cut down by about twenty-five percent (it would sweep the globe again ten years later, and take another ten percent of the world's population), with China, India, and many African nations being the hardest hit, but nowhere other than the Surulere district of Lagos was the death toll an absolute one hundred percent of the population. Why this was, especially when the virus was quickly treatable by conventional medicine, was unknown.

Whatever the truth was it fueled the local superstitions about Surulere to this day, and they were far from unfounded. Mana behaved in strange ways, and while most of Lagos itself felt a little oppressive and toxic, and not something that Rinzler had not experienced before, Surulere was much worse. Even with the excessive and wild vegetation growing as it was there was a tainted smell to the air that many would have expected to be fresh and clean.

In terms of raw magical power Rinzler was the strongest of the three, though he knew Cyclops would be the most impacted by his adept abilities. The fomori's magical power would be nearly cut in half, and be barely stronger than Digger's, but much of his power was in physical abilities over spell power.

If he had done nothing even Rinzler would be at almost half of his own magical potential, and right now he was dealing with the lessened power. Being permanently part of the astral had some blessings, but also was a curse at the same time. While Cyclops and Digger could avoid looking into the astral to see the green and brown haze that prevailed here, Rinzler could not, and so he had learned a few tricks a few years ago to help combat such excesses of foul mana. Problem was that Cyclops had not yet learned how to do this, and he doubted that Digger had either.

"I really don't like it here." Digger said nervously.

"You're not the only one." Icebreaker added, sounding just as nervous. As prevalent as the toxic mana was it was not surprising that Icebreaker was feeling it at some kind of subconscious level.

"Hey, um, you think we oughta pick up the pace?" Wheeler asked.

"You're learning to be a hacker, right?" Digger asked. "What happens when you hack a network too fast and don't check it first?"

"Nothing."

"I find that hard to believe." Cyclops said.

"Wrong!" Digger chimed. "I worked with a technomancer once that prided himself on his speed, could blow in and out faster than anybody. Said taking it slow was for chumps and losers. Then he blew his own brain cells breaking in on one job, and our healer who knew something of IC said he triggered a psychotropic data bomb. Probably would've seen it if he stopped to analyze the node first."

"There you have it." Cyclops said, "We're taking it slow so we…" He and the others stopped when everyone heard a trashcan tip over.

A block ahead, well within the darkening shadows, stood a tall and gangly figure, with skin like ash and sickly white eyes. Rinzler had a hard time perceiving it through the haze in the astral, barely able to see the scabrous gray patches in his orange aura that marked him as infected, but knew well enough that the ghoul would be able to sense them quite clearly. It was something like getting acclimated, or the sensory overload of smelling a thanksgiving turkey being cooked for hours on end. After a while you just don't notice it.

"Don't walk into an ambush." Cyclops finished, holding up his ax as three more figures stepped from their inky black shadows. "Hold your fire until…"

Wheeler drew one of his Predators and fired several shots, and the first ghoul that had stood staggered back.

"God damn it Wheeler!" Icebreaker yelled.

Even with the elevated background weakening him, Cyclops brought his axe up and rushed the closest ghoul.

Rinzler was not charging in, bringing his hands up with his thumb and fingers making a triangle in front of his face as he focused his mind to the core of the magical power within him, weaving it and forcing it to push out against the toxic taint. In a snap this weave pushed just beyond his body, and the stench of the mana was suddenly gone, the ghouls and two spirits now standing out clearly to him in the astral. He could not waste much time as the filter he created would only last for a few minutes.

The ghoul Cyclops had charged had been quite surprised by the fearless fomori. Cyclops's powers extended to enhancing his strength and toughness, but not his skill in combat, and while the diamond hard axe blade might not have come down with as much force here as it did elsewhere his skill at where to place a strike was far from impeded as the ghoul lost an arm in a feeble defense before he was cut down from left shoulder to right hip.

More gunshots rang out as Wheeler turned gunfighter, a Predator in each hand. Rinzler ignored him and focused his attention on the spirits. They both looked like the archetypical specter of death with shadowy hooded robes hiding wispy skeletal bodies, and they noticed he was looking at them.

The spirits were not close together, more at opposite sides of the street as if they were there to support the ghouls from the flanks. So Rinzler bolted off to one side after the closest spirit, planning on making full use of his blessing/curse of existing in the astral as well as the physical plane at the same time.

Physical attributes did not matter to those that existed in the astral plane, but their force of presence which was not the same as willpower or their force of will. Typically the strongest of orks and trolls were wimps when astrally projecting, and spirits knew it.

But Rinzler was no ork or troll, and he did not just extend himself into the astral. The spirit might have thought he was doing just that as his fist came up, and it almost realized the threat in time to evade, realizing that Rinzler's nature allowed his own true strength to extend into the astral, and that strength was superhuman as it crumpled the spirit's head like it was papier-mâché. The spirit flitted about like a loosed balloon as it narrowly evaded a follow up blow, but Rinzler's backhand blow as he stepped into the spirit hit true, and the spirit vanished in swirls of black and toxic mist.

"We need some help over here!" Icebreaker yelled, and Rinzler turned just in time to see him flip a ghoul over his shoulder.

Gathering power, Rinzler quickly unleashed a bolt of crimson lightning at another ghoul that was drawing close to them, the magical energies almost dissipated before the ghoul was electrified and the drain of the spell made Rinzler stagger.

"So, they're harrows." Rinzler softly said, noticing the spirit's attention on him. He reached up to touch one of the links of chain about his neck, and a sudden wave of terror washed over him, and he wished he had a spell that could affect spirits in the astral as he looked for a place to hide. So ran further from the others and zipped behind a large and wildly growing tree.

"Rinzler!" Wheeler yelled. "You asshole!"

Through the astral Rinzler could feel the spirit coming closer, his heart pounding in his chest from the terror it had induced. It would have to materialize to do the same to the others, but Rinzler was extra vulnerable because of his dual nature. And apparently this spirit knew the extra threat he was because of it.

And at least the tree was large enough to shield him in both worlds as the spirit drew closer to him. Rinzler tried to think of what the harrow might do to him next, thinking of the other mind influencing powers the spirit had. He almost did not notice his heart rate slowing.

"By the will of Gaia," Rinzler said softly, focusing his mind, "I deny you your existence!" With the final word he spun back around slamming his hand into the harrow's ribcage as he forced his power and will against its hold on this world, and the sprit recoiled.

"I said be gone!" Rinzler yelled as the harrow tried to flee, and the spirit reeled.

Someone else yelled, and Rinzler could smell the acid coming at him. Using the tree for cover he stepped back, waving his hand to further disrupt the spell coming at him. He turned back, seeing the trail of mana back to the caster, a black skinned man wearing tattered rags for clothes, his hair wild and unkempt.

"Fire purifies the world!" Rinzler yelled back, funneling power into a return spell of his own. Ruby red flames lashed out from his hands, power flowing through his one power focus as fire washed over the toxic shaman. When the flames died down there was the blackened remains of what once was a human seconds before it fell apart into a pile of coal dust.

There were two ghouls left, and they turned to run off, loping along on all fours like frightened animals.

Cyclops was already back with the others, just pulling his axe free from a ghoul's body as Rinzler stepped away from the tree he had hidden behind. He patted his thanks to the tree before he slowly walked back to rejoin the others.

"What the hell happened to you?" Icebreaker asked.

"There were a pair of harrows with them." Rinzler said. "I didn't run away by choice."

"Bullshit, you got scared." Wheeler challenged.

"Shut it." Digger barked, stomping her heel down on Wheeler's foot. "A lot of spirits can cause irrational fear in people. We're lucky he didn't run away far, or for very long."

"Let's get going." Cyclops said, hooking his axe back to his belt. "According to Kayin's info we're getting close to the mask he wants."

"Hey Wheeler, you said on the way over you thought I should advertise my power, strut my stuff, and the like." Rinzler said as they once again followed Cyclops towards their destination.

"Yeah, you should."

"You saw that fire spell of mine? The one that incinerated that shaman?"

"Yeah." Wheeler replied, sounding a little unsure now.

"That flamethrower spell you saw was half power."

Digger stopped in her tracks. "Half power? Meaning you didn't overcast it?" she asked.

"Right at that limit."

"Oh shit." Digger softly said as she started jogging to catch up to the others.

* * *

><p>It was well into the dark of night as Rinzler sat at the far end of their shared room. Jane, Digger, and Icebreaker were fast asleep, Wheeler was deep into some virtual game he had installed in the commlink implanted in his head, and Cyclops was now getting a few hours of sleep after Rinzler had gotten about three hours himself. It was still several hours before sunrise, and maybe another hour after that before the others would begin to stir.<p>

Kayin had been quite excited when they returned later that night with the iron mask he had requested. Besides being old, or maybe a family heirloom, Rinzler had no idea why someone would want it. Magical artifacts of a bygone era were quite coveted, and even a few enchanted items had surfaced before the return of magic, but this mask was simply iron.

Still it got them a chance to meet Oni Adegoke, and hopefully either get close to the missing artifact they were after or Samriel, or maybe even both. The hawala had said he would get a message off right away, and would send a messenger as soon as he had gotten word back. Already Jane had been making plans of her own, looking to have Innocent fly them to the capitol city of Ife if things went well.

Not for the first time Rinzler thought back to their fight against the pack of sasobonsam, one of Africa's variations of the Krieger strain of the Human/Metahuman Vampiric Virus, the toxic shaman, and the two harrow spirits. He replayed in his mind the feeling of the magical compulsion of fear that it created, and tried to see if there was something different he could have done to avoid being affected by it again. He could have cared less if Wheeler thought it was a moment of panic, but it was not something he wanted to happen to him again.

He was just grateful he had been able to keep some semblance of sanity in that fear, as otherwise he could have easily left them all behind and there was nothing they could have done to stop him.


	5. Chapter 5

A Royal Complication (posted 2015/08/09)

Kayin had come through like he said he would, with a messenger boy delivering an invitation to Oni Adegoke's palace for a viewing of numerous relics he had put up for auction.

They had gotten in touch with Innocent right after and arranged a flight to Ife, and it was afternoon when they landed. Right away Rinzler could feel the difference between the feral city and the Yoruban city of Ife. Though technology was just as sparse here as it was in Lagos, Ife was still more vibrant, and the very mana about the city did not carry the same taint.

Rinzler found they would all still have the same difficulty with his magic in Ife as he did in Lagos, but found the background to be a little more pleasant.

The Oni's palace was also a sight to behold, an old and stunning Islamic styled fortress surrounded by a circular two story wall of white marble that was heavily draped in flowering vines, their fragrances potent yet sweet. Beyond the lush green vines and colorful blossoms Rinzler could see a healthy white flowing through the vines, like a gentle river of light.

At the main gate Jane spoke to one of the uniformed guards, and after a minute a group of more guards (all of them with cybernetic eyes and numerous performance enhancements) and a red robed _olorisha_, a priest, came to escort them into the palace. As soon as they stepped through the gate and the thick walls surrounding the palace Rinzler could feel a marked increase in the mana's intensity. At least it was not as bad as the Surulere district of Lagos, but it likely meant that whatever spellcasters the Oni employed here would still have an advantage.

The gardens before the palace were broad, and very well manicured, decorated with various trees and shrubberies to give the place a feel of a tropical oasis. Even the astral, tinted as it was to Rinzler, felt much healthier than Lagos. At the center was the palace itself, the outer wall a concentric circle that was trimmed free of vegetation. Around to their left, and still within the palace grounds, was a helipad. The only way they really noticed it was because a helicopter had come down to land, the blades stirring up loose debris and making a lot of noise. Rinzler also noticed the prominent Aztechnology logo in bright red emblazoned on the helicopter's side, and his eyes narrowed in disgust before he even realized he was not pleased to see them or understand why he felt that way.

More guards stood at the palace entrance, and Rinzler recognized the security checkpoint when he saw it. One guard stood watch while another waved a scanning wand about them. Next to the guards were numerous stewards.

"For everyone's safety we will ask you to turn over all of your weapons while you are guests at the Oni's palace." the guard with the wand said in very good English, waving two of the stewards forward.

"I trust you will take good care of our things while we are here." Cyclops said as he unhitched his gun belt. He handed it to one of the stewards, who almost dropped it from the unexpected weight of both the large revolver and axe holstered to it.

"Your things will be recorded and securely stored." the guard assured them as Cyclops began removing the shotgun pistol at his left arm.

"You better." Wheeler threatened as he handed over his Predators to the other steward.

"Relax, will you?" Icebreaker said as he gave the same steward a taser pistol and a box of darts. "The Oni's security will take good care of our weapons, and it'll hurt his reputation around here if they don't."

"More than just his reputation." Cyclops said deeply, "I _really_ like my axe."

The guard with the wand gave Rinzler an odd look. "No weapons?" he asked.

"I don't need a gun." Rinzler replied, and noticed this made the guard look rather nervous. He then noticed one of the priests scrutinizing him quite closely in the astral. He said nothing when his gaze moved on to someone else. At least his masked aura was still holding up.

Their escort did not leave them once they were allowed in. After being led down a couple of hallways the guest wing of the palace and doors to numerous luxury suites.

Their red-robed guide turned to them at the door to their suite, saying "There will be a viewing of the items in two hours, which will be followed by a formal dinner with the Oni. Until then you are welcome to rest in the suite and make use of the secured satellite uplink that is available, or go anywhere within the guest wing of the palace. I would be happy to give you a tour if you like."

"Thanks, but I think this will be fine." Jane said as Cyclops walked in first. Jane went second, followed by the others while Rinzler waited. Once they were inside he simply nodded to the _olorisha_ and walked in.

"This is quite the pad." commented Wheeler as he dropped down on a rather luxurious sofa.

"I wish I'd known there'd be a formal dinner with the Oni." Digger added as she climbed up into an equally luxurious looking chair.

"Oh, I wouldn't worry about that too much." Icebreaker said as he went straight for the liquor cabinet. "This isn't exactly your run-of-the-mill type of auction. I'm sure he'll be fine if some people aren't dressed up for a grand ball at dinner."

"You're sure of that?" Digger asked.

"Worst case we just tell the truth. We're Jane's bodyguards." Cyclops said.

"And not all bodyguards around here have the latest from Mortimer Of London." Icebreaker added, "As long as we behave ourselves," his gaze drifted to Wheeler, "we'll be just fine."

"Besides I expect Kayin would've told us if there was a dress code." Jane added. "I don't think those Azzie types were as formal as they could've been with what they were wearing. Which reminds me, Digger, can you try and look up everything you can on everyone that's here for the auction?"

"Sure."

Two hours later their escort came for them, along with two guards. They were led through a twisting maze of hallways and corridors, down more than one flight of stairs, and ultimately into a vast internal room, a mosque converted into a giant vault with a door large enough to drive a large truck through. As they walked through the doors Rinzler noticed that the walls were as thick as an ork was tall. Four armed guards stood at the door, but said nothing as they walked inside. There was also no ward to block or impede Rinzler from entering the vault.

The room inside was an incredible treasure vault. Various antiques were carefully displayed on open shelves, on the walls, inside glass cases, and a few were even preserved within tanks of what was probably seawater. Gemstone encrusted masks sat next to shards of ancient pottery on one wall, and below that was a climate controlled glass case filled with many sheets of papyrus. Many of the relics and artifacts were also awakened, their glow in the astral quite plain to Rinzler's senses.

Oni Adegoke also spared little when it came to the security of the vault. There were numerous politely and discrete armed guards as well as several powerful spirits floating about in the astral. Rinzler wondered how many of the spirits were able to see through his disguised aura of trying to look like a more mundane person. At least it was not difficult to avoid bumping into any of the spirits as they hovered above everybody.

Rinzler was examining a shelf of various African statuettes when Cyclops discretely stepped up beside him. "Target two is in the room, checking out a case labeled the 'Piri Reis Map.'"

Slowly Rinzler turned around, acting like he was taking in the room for something new to look at. At a more central display stand he saw several elves (most of them well dressed) looking at a single piece of parchment, and one of them looked like Samriel (the only one that looked more like a roughneck).

"Got him." Rinzler replied.

"Getting a good read on him?"

"I'm about to."

The ambient mana in the room was much cleaner than above ground, likely to not only allow everyone that was awakened here to more properly examine any magical relics that were part of the auction, but also to not taint or interfere with any of those magical relics to begin with. What Rinzler saw in Samriel was quite interesting in deed.

The elf's aura was slightly more degraded than Icebreaker's, and the vast majority of the damage came from tailor made bioware implants throughout his whole body, with the only cybernetic implants being his solid silver eyes. On top of that Samriel was awakened and despite the damage he likely suffered to his magical abilities he was still of considerable power, and this was through a false aura that Samriel had woven about himself, similar to what Rinzler did to disguise more than just his own magical potential.

"Well?" Cyclops asked when it seemed Rinzler was taking too long.

Rinzler turned back around. "I don't think he saw me." he said softly, "But he's heavily augmented throughout his whole body; muscle, bones, blood, and heart, almost all of it's bioware. And he's magical, too, and no slouch in ability. Has a false aura to try and make himself look like a sleeper."

"How'd you rate his power compared to mine?"

"If he's an adept, I'd say he's a few steps below you. Just don't forget the implants."

Cyclops chuckled.

Paying more attention to the astral, Rinzler waited until he sensed Samriel and the other elves leave the display stand they had been at. Acting casually he meandered on over to it to see what they had been so interested in.

It was a rather large sheet of parchment that appeared to be a map of the world. Looking at the map made Rinzler wish he could separate himself from the astral, seeing inked notation overlaid by other writing and symbols. It was incredibly clear to read astrally, with additional glowing lines crisscrossing it, and strange ideograms marked additional features. It was a little hard for him to tell but it looked like there were additional land masses off the northeast coast of South America and the Gulf of Guinea just south of them. It also felt incredibly old.

"Is that what I think it is?" Digger asked softly as she floated over next to Rinzler. Behind her he saw an _olorisha_ watching her closely with his astral sight. Maybe he figured her use of levitation magic was okay as long as she was just using it on herself.

"I have no idea, but Cyclops said it was labeled the 'Piri Reis Map.'" he said.

"Yeah, it says so right there." Digger told him, pointing into empty space.

"Ah, AR. Yeah, I don't see those things."

Digger gave him a strange look.

"Augmented reality makes me dizzy." Rinzler told her.

"Oh, okay. Well if that really is the map it's over five hundred years old. It's also a mystery how Piri Reis drew it since it's showing Antarctica and it hadn't been discovered yet."

"I don't think he…" Rinzler started to say as Jane walked up to them. She briefly held up one finger to her lips and gave them a wink.

"Let's take a look around at the other items." Rinzler suggested with a wry smile.

After the showing everyone was ushered out of the vault and to a rather grand dining hall. The Oni spared little when it came to the food, all completely natural and dishes of local cuisine, well prepared and purified against native bugs that could make any of the guests present unduly sick. It was all served on fine porcelain plates edged in gold, drinks in chilled crystal goblets edged in gold, and the silverware was actually a gold alloy.

Rinzler and the others were also not the only ones that were not formally dressed, but Wheeler surprised Rinzler as he managed to behave himself quite nicely.

It was just after midnight when everyone was escorted back to their suites.

"Digger, I'd like a secured link through the satellite link we've got. I've got to talk to my employer." Jane said as she sat down in a chair.

"I'm on it." Digger replied.

"Well, we've got Samriel here, but no… whatever it is you're looking for. So now what?" Icebreaker asked.

"I got an extra good look at Samriel. There's no way he can easily hide himself from me if we cross paths again." Rinzler said.

"He was talking with a redheaded elf dressed like she's from Tir Tairngire. It was Sperethiel they were speaking in, but they were rather interested in the map." Cyclops told them. Rinzler knew whatever he heard would have been translated through a linguasoft, but it was still much better than anything Rinzler could have provided as he did not understand the language at all.

"That's what I thought, too." Jane said.

"Line's secured for you." Digger announced.

"Thanks. Shouldn't be long." Jane told them as she plugged her commlink into the terminal for their satellite uplink.

"So, you think this's all just a wild goose chase?" Wheeler asked.

"Maybe the relic isn't here, but the person is." Cyclops told them. "Samriel _is_ here, and part of our mission was to track him down."

"So now we just have to figure out why he's here." Rinzler added.

"It's sounding like he's here for the same reason we're here. That red haired elf is paying him to be her bodyguard." Icebreaker said.

"Makes sense." Cyclops said, nodding.

"So that means he had nothing to do with the… whatever that went missing, that we're looking for?" Wheeler asked.

"It's good odds." Icebreaker answered.

"Fuck." Wheeler cussed, kicking the foot of a sofa.

"Just let him vent a little. He doesn't do too well when a job goes south." Icebreaker told them.

"Well, if that map weren't magical it might not be worth as much as the other things in the vault." Digger said, "It's over five hundred years old, not the most accurate for the age, yet it's also supposedly used mathematics to chart the size of a round planet three hundred years before the math existed. It also is the oldest map believed to exist that actually shows the Antarctic coast, though even that is wrong."

"Wrong? How?" Icebreaker asked.

Wheeler dropped himself heavily on the sofa.

"Well, supposedly the Antarctic coast on the Piri Reis map is Antarctica without ice. Supposedly the last time that happened was around four thousand B.C."

"Six thousand years ago, during the decline of magic in the fourth world." Rinzler mused.

"So the map's a fake?" Icebreaker asked.

"No, the map is real." Jane told them as she returned from her call, "It just means that Piri Reis didn't draw it as history tells.

"Now I know you guys don't like to do stuff like this, but my employer's changing my job. Now he wants us to get the map, and I'll pay you all ten percent of the map's value."

"And how much are we talking about here?" Icebreaker asked, "I think we might be good enough for a sudden change in the work order, but, ah, kinda helps to know how much we're talking about here."

"One million nuyen." Jane told them.

"So our finder's fee goes up from fifty to a hundred thousand nuyen." Icebreaker mused.

"This also includes the per day and per diem we agreed upon earlier." Jane told them.

"So, double the finder's fee and we get this map instead." Cyclops said. "And Samriel?"

"Forget about him for now, unless he gets involved."

"So stealing it's an option?" Wheeler asked.

"That'll be hard to do. The vault walls are incredibly thick, and the spirits in there are powerful." Rinzler told them. "Even if that vault is constantly cleansed, they'll only get more powerful if they chase you beyond its walls."

"How many did you notice?" Jane asked.

"Five at least. Doesn't mean some were pulled out while we were all in there."

"But there could've been even more in there, watching in case someone got sticky fingers." Icebreaker added.

"WiFi's also dead inside the vault." Digger added.

"Maybe dead, but I did spot a few well hidden sensor packages in there." Icebreaker told them, "Figured they'd be hardwired."

The door to their suite suddenly burst open, with palace guards rushing in. The leading two guards were the most unfortunate of the group. Rinzler spun on one, landing a hard punch to the guard's chest before spinning the man around into a choke hold. Cyclops, with his longer reach, had jerked the guard closer to him, knocking the man's assault rifle from his hands before wrapping him up in a one-armed bear hug. The guards that were behind them took a few steps backwards, aiming their assault rifles at them.

"I could make a call, but I don't think it'll be much help here." Cyclops said as Rinzler eyed their situation. As he spoke an _olorisha_ stepped up towards them, and Rinzler could see two spirits hiding behind him in the astral. The priest also had extra blue swirls and bubbles floating about him, with four in particular holding their place at his eyes and ears, squished to look more like lenses.

"I hope you have an explanation." the priest said.

Behind them Wheeler grunted as if he had been jabbed in the ribs. "Actually I was hoping you had one." Icebreaker said as he walked up between Cyclops and Rinzler, keeping just two steps behind them. "I thought we were guests here, and you come busting in here ready for war."

"We are here looking for a thief." the priest told them.

"And are all of the Oni's guests getting this same treatment?" Icebreaker asked.

"That is not of your concern. Already you are looking like you may be the thieves we are looking for."

"Boys, could you please release the palace guards?" Jane asked.

Rinzler glanced over to Cyclops, who was looking at him out of the corner of his good eyes. They both nodded ever so slightly before slowly easing their holds on the two guards. The men looked quite relieved to be free and were more anxious to put some distance between them. The one Cyclops had disarmed seemed relieved to have his assault rifle back in his hands.

"You take orders from a woman?" the priest asked.

"She is our employer." Cyclops said darkly.

"Like the red haired elf from Tir Tairngire." Rinzler added as he stared at the priest.

"Perhaps the Oni and his subjects all think of women the world round as lesser people." Cyclops said.

Icebreaker coughed, "Um, could we get back to the matter at hand? You said you were looking for a thief?"

"Yes. Not long ago someone broke into the vault and stole an important item." the priest told them.

"Certainly couldn't've been us. We've been in here talking about the upcoming auction since dinner." Icebreaker said.

The priest said something in Yoruba, and two guards stepped up to him and Cyclops.

"Let 'em by, he's telling them to search the suite." Icebreaker said.

Again Rinzler and Cyclops shared a look before parting for the two palace guards. They both kept their backs to the walls so they could watch the guards and priest. The guard's inspection was rather quick, and in a minute or two they were back. One of them said something in Yoruba to the priest. The priest nodded and the guards all filed back out of the suite.

"My apologies for the intrusion. If there is anything we can provide for you?" the priest said.

"What exactly was taken?" Jane asked.

The priest said nothing as he turned and walked out of the suite.

"Helpful my ass." Wheeler muttered.

"This is a bit of luck." Jane said with a smile.

"Luck? With the theft security's gonna be tighter than a drum! How're we gonna get the map now?" Wheeler said.

"There's other ways to get the map than stealing it." Jane said, "We might have to get into the auction and actually bid on the map. I just wish I had brought the Oni a bribe… A 'goodwill gesture.' But getting a hold of something of appropriate value here before the auction would be a problem."

"Why does it sound like you'll be wanting us to go capture the thief?" Icebreaker asked.

Jane smiled sweetly. "Because I think he'll be appreciative if we bring him the thief and the statue. And you'll have to be quick because the Oni will be sending his own men to track the thief down."

"I'll get started on the network and see if I can get anything out of it." Digger said.

"I'll try talking to some of the guards. Maybe someone's got loose lips." Icebreaker added as he headed to the suite's door.

"So we'll need to find him alive, too." Cyclops said.

"I would think that if I were Adegoke I'd want to interrogate the thief personally." Rinzler commented. "Besides, it is more work to bring in a live person than a dead body."

"I don't think I'm gonna be able to get into their network, beyond the uplink, anytime soon." Digger announced, "The whole network's still on alert."

"Let's hope Icebreaker has better luck." Jane said with a soft sigh.

"You sure you ain't gonna give it a try?" Wheeler asked.

"Maybe if I was a technomancer instead of a magician I'd be able to conjure up a few sprites to help cover my digital ass." Digger returned sharply. Rinzler noticed her aura becoming extra prickly with red spikes as she glared at Wheeler. "As it is I'd need a few hours to probe the network. If either of us go flying in we'll be detected before we breach the first firewall."

Wheeler scowled.

The door to their suite opened and closed. "Well, I've got some good news and bad news." Icebreaker said as he walked in. "I managed to score us a hardcopy of what the statue looks like." he told them as he handed Cyclops a physical photograph, "And the bad news is the Oni's already sent men to Lagos in search of the thief."

"And how're we supposed to get ahead of them? Fly?" Wheeler asked.

"They're sure that's where the thief's off to?" Rinzler asked.

"Two trucks with soldiers and some _olorisha_ are already gone." Icebreaker told them.

Jane smiled. "Of course. I'll contact Innocent and tell him you guys need to make a round trip to Lagos and back."

The little gnome nodded. "Oh, yeah, what I managed to dig up on the others here for the auction."

"Thanks." Jane said, nodding, her hands waving as she worked with invisible icons.

"And you?" Cyclops asked.

"It'll look too suspicious if all of us go." Jane said, "I'll stay here and tell the Oni that you're all off to retrieve a gift for him. I'll be fine since I'm a guest here. There shouldn't be any more rude people barging in."

"And if we don't manage to track down the thief and statue?" Rinzler asked.

"Then I hope you can figure another way to get to the map."


	6. Chapter 6

To Catch A Thief, Part 1 (posted 2015/10/16)

The morning flight back to Lagos had not quite been as smooth as the flight out, but Innocent had managed to avoid what he called "drunken idiots" that had decided to shoot into the sky after them.

And at least the local airport security opted to not hassle them about the "arrival tax" this time.

"So where do we even being?" Wheeler asked as they walked out to the street.

"We get our guide, find Kayin, and ask him some questions." Icebreaker said as he flagged down a bus.

"You think we've got time for one of those?" Digger asked.

"Fastest is an _okada_." Icebreaker told them, "But we've gotta be really lucky to find one that'll take Cyclops.

"And those run, what, twenty naira?" Wheeler asked.

"An hour." Icebreaker corrected, waving off the bus that was about to stop for them.

Cyclops slapped the side of that bus several times, far from hard enough to dent the already battered vehicle, but it was enough to make the driver stop.

"You thinking something?" Icebreaker asked.

"I'll take this down to Leventis, you guys take the bikes and get Udo and we'll meet up at Kayin's." Cyclops said.

"Bit risky, don't you think?" Wheeler asked.

"You scared?"

"No, but it's just…"

"Look, don't wet yourself worrying about me. We've got a job to do and we've got to hurry." With that he climbed into the bus. The diesel engine sounded like it was in dire need of a tune up as the bus rumbled away.

A short while later Icebreaker was able to flag down four _okada_. Payment was done in advance and as soon as they were set they were off. Digger looked absolutely terrified as she clung to the driver of her _okada_ as they zipped and weaved through traffic. It was one thing to watch the _okada_ as they raced down the streets, but something completely different when you were a passenger on one.

It took about an hour to get to the hotel, and Udo was more than excited to be their guide once more, especially when it involved a ride on an _okada_ as well (and he did not have to pay for it).

Cyclops had just gotten to Kayin's shop when the others did. "Glad to see you survived the ride." he commented as he pushed open the shop's door.

"Gentlemen!" Kayin said with a smile, "I will be with you shortly." He then turned to the customer he had been helping when they came in. Money and a small urn of some kind were exchanged, and the other man walked out of the shop.

"Now, how can I help such wonderful customers?" Kayin asked Rinzler and the others with the zealousness of customer service only a true merchant could muster.

"You hear anything about what happened at the Oni's palace last night?" Icebreaker asked.

"I think so. There is talk that someone stole from Oni Adegoke. Poor fool is food for ghouls."

"Maybe, but we're looking for that fool."

Kayin nodded, smiling just a little. "Rumor is Igbos brag of stealing from the Yoruba Oni. I have not heard name, no… But for small fee I could introduce you to fixers in Lagos who know everyone."

Icebreaker was the first to dig into his pockets, pulling out two tokens marked with a parrot on one side. "Well, c'mon guys, pitch in." he told them.

Rinzler dug out his naira tokens, plucking out two similarly marked ones and handing them to Kayin as well.

Kayin nodded appreciatively as he collected the naira.

"There is restaurant on Lagos Mainland, by the University, called The Three Friends. After the dinner crowd leaves, it fills up with all best local fixers. Always there is half dozen or more in the place. Ask for Hippo Kojili. Tell Hippo I send you."

"And how're we gonna recognize him?" Wheeler asked.

"Don't worry, you recognize him. Hippo is fattest fixer in Lagos. He knows everyone in the city, and I'm sure he tell you more."

* * *

><p>With Udo's help it was not too difficult to find The Three Friends. Getting there was a little different as he took them on a much more winding path around, all to avoid where the Area Boys were so they would not have to pay any tolls by skirting the edges of their territories instead of directly crossing them.<p>

The Three Friends was one of the better looking restaurants Rinzler had seen, and likely due to the popularity of the university crowd that patroned it on a regular basis. Even so the posters of exotic cities like Paris, Portland, and Seattle, were faded, the vinyl booths lining the walls were tattered with age, and the linoleum floor was well worn. Even though the walls did not appear to have been painted in a very long time, barely a hint of the original mint green color, Rinzler could smell a trace of chemical cleansers that had been used within the last few days.

With the university dinner crowd gone the place was filled with just locals, and every one of them looked at Rinzler and the others as they walked in. It was obvious to anyone who could see that they were clearly _oyibos_, sticking out worse than a troll at a dwarf convention.

"He wasn't kidding when he said we'd recognize him." Cyclops said as he calmly strode into the restaurant. As they walked the others began returning to whatever conversations they were having. Still Rinzler could feel them paying attention to him and the others.

When Rinzler spotted the booth Cyclops was walking to he knew why. It was a booth at the back of The Three Friends, and on the bench against the wall sat an immensely obese ork (he took up the whole bench by himself), his skin almost as black as onyx, his teeth and tusks a vibrant white as he smiled.

"Ah, new friends!" the obese ork said in accented English, his voice not quite as deep as Rinzler expected to hear, his teeth flashing in a big smile.

"Kayin referred us to you." Icebreaker said, sitting down in the bench opposite of the ork. Rinzler and Cyclops stood at the end of the booth, Rinzler facing them to watch the conversation while Cyclops kept a wary eye out towards the rest of the restaurant crowd. "We're looking for a thief."

Looking indignant the ork said, "No thieves here. This 'Three Friends.'"

"You are Hippo Kojoli, aren't you?" Icebreaker asked. "If you're not then maybe you can't help us…"

The ork, Hippo, nodded, and then said something Rinzler could not understand. Rinzler kept an eye on Hippo, watching as green swirls started to appear in his aura. The obese ork had no implants, no cyber, and no magical ability that Rinzler could see. The biggest threat Hippo was to any of them was falling over and squishing Digger beneath his immense bulk, but that did not mean the fat ork did not have more capable friends.

Then Icebreaker sighed. "He'll help us, but not for free."

"So what else is new?" Wheeler cynically asked.

"What's he want?" Rinzler asked.

"Either for us to do a job for him, to deliver something to Lagos Island, or we pay him." Icebreaker told them.

"How much?" Wheeler asked.

"Ten thousand naira."

Rinzler noticed a smile creep up on Hippo's face. Of course he would for that much money.

"We don't have the time to play errand boy." Cyclops said, digging into his pocket.

"Especially when we're already playing errand boy." Icebreaker wryly added.

"Two thousand each. That's what, a hundred nuyen, so sure." Rinzler added. He pulled out several naira tokens, selecting two that matched the two marked with a lion that Cyclops tossed onto the table, and dropped them on the table as well.

Once there were ten tokens total on the table Hippo reached for them. Icebreaker was the faster, scooping up all of the coins and saying something to Hippo. Briefly Rinzler saw the green turn to yellow as the fat ork looked up at him, then Cyclops, before shifting back to green again. "What'd you tell him?" he asked.

"Just that you two will be really upset if he's not giving us the chip truth." Icebreaker said, relinquishing the naira tokens. "And that he _really_ doesn't want to make you two upset."

Hippo was not too anxious to collect the ten tokens, eyeing Rinzler and Cyclops as he did. He and Icebreaker spoke again, and when Icebreaker nodded he figured they were done and it was time to leave.

"So, what's the deal?" Wheeler asked once they were outside of The Three Friends.

"Says we're looking for an Igbo thief by the name of Silence." Icebreaker told them, "And our best bet to find him is a place called The Dancing Ork."

"Doesn't sound like a place for kids." Cyclops said.

"Dancing Ork is grown up place." Udo told them. "In Agege, Igbo territory. Is dangerous there."

"Can you at least lead us there?" Wheeler asked.

Udo looked rather uncertain, his dark eyes darting around.

"Digger knows magic that'll hide you from anyone that isn't a priest." Cyclops said, "If anyone starts a fight you two hide and we'll deal with them."

Udo looked a little unsure of the idea, until Rinzler decided to pull out a naira token with a parrot on it. Then the boy's eyes went wide.

"What're you doing? We're already paying him." Wheeler asked.

"You ever hear of something called Hazard Pay?" Rinzler asked.

Udo shook his head.

"Well, Hazard Pay is when you get paid extra for doing something extra special dangerous." Rinzler told him. "You lead us to the Dancing Ork…"

"And I'll give you another coin like it." Cyclops said. He nodded to Rinzler.

"Right, one now, another when we're there." Rinzler said.

Udo eagerly nodded, and Rinzler paid him. Quickly the one hundred naira token disappeared into a pocket. "This way!" he said excitedly.

Getting to the Agege district of Lagos was not too difficult, and Rinzler noticed how the city changed as they moved in deeper from the lagoon. The neighborhood constantly grew poorer and poorer to the point where many back alleys were nothing more than muddy or waterlogged ditches, sometimes even small marshy areas with slime slick boards for narrow footbridges. Buildings were built with unadorned cinderblocks at the best and rotting wood or scavenged plastic slabs for simpler shacks at the worst. This extended into the ambient mana as well, the toxic nature a little thicker here than normal for the rest of Lagos, and to Rinzler it made some of the worst parts of Redmond feel like a paradise.

"Hold up." Cyclops said, stopping as they came into an intersection. "Udo, get behind me, now."

"We in for trouble?" Icebreaker asked, his hand going to the inside of his jacket.

"You in trouble." came a voice from the shadows off to their left. When Rinzler looked he could see the auras of several orks, blood red and rimmed with red and green spikes. Two of them had a barghest on a chain. Barghests were an awakened animal that resembled an oversized mastiff, with short black fur that laid flat against its skin, spines that ran the length of its spine, shining red eyes and eerily glowing teeth as it snarled. They pulled against their leashes and collars made from nothing more than a length of chain, and it took their ork handlers both hands to control the paracritters.

Ahead of them appeared more orks, two of them reigning in on barghests on a similar chain leashes. Among all of the orks Rinzler noticed that a few of them were awakened, though what their magic fueled would not be evident right away.

"Area Boys." Icebreaker said softly. "Right, so how much is the toll?" he loudly asked.

"I don't think they want money." Rinzler said as he looked over the orks. The green he saw in their auras told him differently, that they really were interested in money, but overall what he saw told him they were not interested in payment.

"Think you can cleanse the area a little bit?" Cyclops asked.

"Yeah, I think I can." Rinzler said.

Rinzler did not have the chance to as the orks loosed their barghests. "Run!" Cyclops yelled as Rinzler turned to face them. Both he and Cyclops knew the animals would go after him before any of the others.

"_Giants of Muspellheim, send a warrior for the blood of my enemies!_" intoned Cyclops as Rinzler's fist connected with the muzzle of the lead barghest. The hound was sent rolling to the side, and Rinzler had pulled his hand back just in time to avoid the snapping jaws of its partner. Stepping in to backhand the second barghest proved fruitless, though Rinzler noticed the animal was not completely stupid as it ducked away from his fist.

Automatic gunfire erupted from behind him. A quick glance behind him astrally revealed a spiritually empowered Cyclops rushing into the Area Boys behind him. Unconcerned with the gunfire Rinzler turned his attention to the three barghests that were circling him. Slowly he touched the links of chain that hung about his neck, activating one focus in particular as he channeled a spell into it to quicken his actions.

The barghest to his left attacked first, and Rinzler had a hand up to catch it by the mouth. It ineffectively gnashed his teeth against his flesh before he threw it at another barghest, sending the two of them tumbling. The third came at him, jaws snapping furiously. Rinzler stepped back to avoid its charge, bringing up a foot to try and kick it away. His foot hooked under its belly and instead of a hard blow he lifted the hound and sent it flying a few meters away. While the animals struggled to regain their footing Rinzler activated another spell holding focus, channeling elemental fire to surround his body and into the focus. Knowing the animals would chase him, Rinzler set his gaze on the Area Boys, and the awakened one that was with them in particular, and charged.

Most of the Area Boys had their AK-97s in hand, and were quick to shoot at the charging Rinzler. He ignored the bullets as they flew at him, barely noticing the ones that did strike his body. He brought a fist around to strike an Area Boy he (not the awakened one) and barely missed as the ork ducked. This made him all the easier to kick as Rinzler brought his foot up in a powerful blow that broke ribs as it sent him flying.

Rinzler could feel it coming on again, the same kind of irrational fear that the harrow had used. He fought against it, stonewalling his mind against the artificial influences being caused by the barghests. He turned on them, open hands unleashing deep crimson flames, the flow of mana burning him as well as he burned one of the barghests.

Gunshots continued to ring out, but Rinzler turned his attention back to the Area Boys closest to him. The one that was awakened knew how to see into the astral, and Rinzler flared his own ability well beyond the normal, much like how a bird would spread its wings or a cobra used its hood to appear larger and more fearsome than it really was.

The Area Boy screamed, dropping his AK-97 as he ran back down the alleyway they had come. The other two glanced at each other before taking off after him.

Barghests came at him again, and Rinzler kicked at one of them as he ran by. The paracritters were insanely ferocious about attacking him even though he was on fire, and the crimson light was all the warning the Area Boys in the intersection had before Rinzler simply plowed into them. Though his spell was two thirds what it normally would have been because of the toxic mana in the area, the fire was still a good motivator to make the Area Boys scramble away from him. Still they could not move any faster than Rinzler as he lashed out at one of them, his burning hand setting the Area Boy on fire.

Cyclops came in swinging, and Rinzler ducked as the fomori took off the head of another Area Boy. In his follow through Cyclops took two more steps and brought his axe down to split the skull of a Barghest, the axe blade easily digging deep into the ground.

Most of the surviving Area Boys turned and ran, leaving the last barghest and their fallen brothers behind. A gunshot rang out, and the hound yelped before turning to run off into the darkness.

"I need help!" Digger yelled.

"There's a survivor, bring him." Cyclops said.

With a thought Rinzler ended his fiery spell. It was not hard to find the Area Boy Cyclops had mentioned, his aura flooded with yellow. He apparently had been shot in the leg, lying on the ground as he was. Rinzler ended his fire aura spell and simply grabbed the black skinned ork by the collar of his armored vest, dragging him behind him as he walked back to the others.

"It's this mana." Digger said, sounding much more hysterical than Rinzler would have expected, "It's making it hard to heal him."

Rinzler was about to ask who, but then noticed that Udo had been shot, blood flowing from his shoulder, and his aura was rife with yellow and white though he did not need to see that to know the child was in shock and fearful of his own life.

"Wheeler, if he moves, kill him." Rinzler said, dropping the Area Boy. Wheeler set the hammer back on his Predator IV, aiming at the Area Boy's head without question.

"I'll give you some time." Cyclops said, kneeling beside Udo and lightly placing a massive hand over the boy's. The spirit flowed from Cyclops's body into Udo's, and Rinzler could barely see the child's fear as the spirit took over. Still, the spirit's power would fortify Udo's body, giving him precious minutes at least so he would live.

Bringing his arms up, crossed before his face, Rinzler drew into the core of his power again, but not for a spell or a magical construct to filter the toxic mana from around him, but to unleash that power into a pulse to push back that toxic power from around him and those about him, gesturing with a flourish as the toxic mana began to subside.

"Why didn't you do that before?" Digger asked.

"The boy?" Icebreaker asked.

"Oh, right." Digger immediately began a soft chant in Latin as she worked a healing spell on Udo.

The Area Boy said something. "He thinks we're wasting our time with this Yoruba trash." Icebreaker translated. Again the Area Boy spoke. "Said we should just let him die."

Rinzler knelt over the Area Boy, and Wheeler took a step to the side so he could keep a clear view of the ork's head. Almost sweetly he said, "Ask him if he's the one that shot Udo."

Icebreaker spoke, and the Area Boy grinned. He looked quite pleased with himself, though Rinzler wondered if he was taking credit for the deed or if he had actually done it. Rinzler grabbed the Area Boy's left hand, thumb and forefinger pressing so hard into flesh that the ork cried out in pain.

"No, not that one." Icebreaker said, and Rinzler glanced up to him, almost glaringly. "It's a cultural thing, right and left hand. If you want to make his life more miserable then fuck up his right hand."

The Area Boy panted in relief as the pressure was suddenly gone from his left hand. Fast as lightning Rinzler struck, his left fist smashing the Area Boy's right hand into the ground, the unrestrained blow smashing bone and pulping flesh, and the Area Boy screamed at the top of his lungs in pure, unadulterated pain.

Gently, almost lovingly Rinzler stroked the ork's cheek with the back of his right hand. "Tell him that he better pray to whatever god he believes in that Udo lives," he said, tapping the tip of the ork's tusk with a finger, "or I will rip his tusks out and take them for a trophy."

Icebreaker repeated Rinzler's words, and breathing heavily with fear the Area Boy began what Rinzler thought was a prayer.

The seconds seemed to tick by like minutes before Digger broke the silence. "He's gonna make it."

Lightly Rinzler patted the ork's cheek before he stood up. "Give him the good news, Ice." he said with a malicious smile.

Icebreaker repeated it for the Area Boy.

"Alright then, let's get going." Rinzler said.

"We're just gonna leave him?" Wheeler asked. "Won't he bring more of his friends?"

"News flash, he got left behind." Icebreaker said, "Those that fled are already telling their buddies about us, so we certainly can be expecting more trouble tonight."

"Tell him that one of his buddies read my aura and thinks he knows how powerful I am." Rinzler said, "Tell him to track that buddy down to tell him I was holding back my magic."

Icebreaker translated this as the Area Boy stood, looking a little confused at them. Icebreaker said something extra and the Area Boy hobbled off as quickly as he could, cradling his smashed hand to his body.

"Here, let me help." Cyclops said, not only helping the no longer possessed Udo to his feet but picking up the boy to put on his shoulders. The boy was still crying, but hung onto the fomori tightly though he still favored the arm that had been shot.

"You think that'll be enough to scare them?" Icebreaker asked as continued on again.

"Not sure." Rinzler honestly said, "There's a chance someone will think I'm bluffing, or that they're more than powerful enough and come snooping around."

"And that one you mentioned, he get a good read on you?" Digger asked, her voice soft spoken.

"I think so. So, Digger, what happened back there?" Rinzler asked.

"I… I tried a barrier spell." Digger softly said, looking down at her feet as they walked. "I guess I didn't make it strong enough."

"At least you did something." Rinzler said.

"Odds are good that he could've died if you didn't have that barrier spell." Cyclops added. Rinzler noticed Digger's aura seemed to brighten up just a little.

"You really think so?" Wheeler asked.

"Maybe." Digger said, still speaking softly. "I mean, it could've slowed the bullet down… a little."

"Good enough for me." Icebreaker said.

"Maybe next time I could… Yeah, maybe that'll be better."

Rinzler smiled as he listened to Digger talk to herself, theorizing what she might be able to do differently that would be a whole lot better.

No Area Boys hassled them as they traveled deeper into Agege, and Rinzler could see the nervousness building up in Udo as they walked. For him this was effectively enemy territory, like an American spy walking in downtown Moscow during the height of last century's cold war.

Finally they reached The Dancing Ork. Like much of the neighborhood it was a decrepit building, made of cinderblocks and standing only one story tall, with red bricks filling in what once were windows, and a generator rattled from on top of the roof.

"So what're we going to do if he's in there?" Wheeler asked.

"Get him to unburden his troubled soul." Icebreaker said with a flashy smile.

"And if he runs?"

"I'm a pretty fair tracker, we'll find him." Rinzler answered with more grim determination.

"Digger, you ready?" Cyclops asked, kneeling down to help Udo off of his shoulders.

The little gnome nodded. "I think so." she said.

Sky blue ribbons of mana swirled about Digger, and then the same happened to Udo, both of them disappearing.

"Good, and don't forget to find a hiding spot close by, just in case." Cyclops said.

Rinzler watched as the two headed off to hide next to some piled up trash next to another building, their auras and Digger's spells glowing quite brightly to him in the astral.

"Right, in we go." Icebreaker said.

The Dancing Ork was not built to accommodate trolls too well. Cyclops had to duck as he stepped through the two meter high doorway that opened immediately into a large open room. Inside were two burly looking ork bouncers right at the door, at the center was a raised platform with a naked ork woman danced to an outdated techno/soft electronica song mixed song, and surrounding her dance stage were about a dozen more orks.

"So how're we gonna recognize him?" Icebreaker asked.

"Follow the ork heading for the back." Cyclops said.

Rinzler spotted the ork Cyclops had mentioned, his aura threaded with orange and yellow, a nice contrast to the purple spots and flowing lines of the orks surrounding the naked dancer.

"I got point." Rinzler said, stepping around Cyclops as he worked his way around the dance stage after the fleeing ork.

The ork went down a hallway that led to many private rooms, and just as Rinzler got to it he saw two ork men at the other end. The one that Cyclops had spotted had fading yellow in his aura, but the other had fat ribbons of yellow swirling about him like a cyclone and he was awakened. The ork bolted out a back door as Rinzler rushed them. He stopped when he reached the ork, staring at him intently, but also breathing in deeply to smell him and everything at the end of the hallway; sweat, fear, perfume, offal. Rinzler bared his teeth on the ork, making him flinch, but the smell of fear was a little different.

"You're not Silence." Rinzler said as the others caught up to him.

He could not tell if the ork actually understood English, or just happened to recognize the one word, 'Silence,' when Rinzler spoke, but he nervously pointed at the door the awakened ork had fled through.

Icebreaker was the first to the door, but he could not push it open. "Shit! I think he blocked it somehow." he told them.

"Make a hole!" Cyclops said loudly. Rinzler pressed himself against the wall as the fomori barreled through. Cyclops turned his shoulder into the door and plowed through it with ease, shattering the swamp soaked wood and leaving only a few pieces left on their hinges, and trashing whatever it was that Silence had put in their way. Rinzler was hot on his heels out the door.

"Which way?" Cyclops asked, looking around.

Rinzler forced his heart to slow, breathing in deeply to try and catch the scent. Then he caught it, a mix of ork body odor, perfume, and fear, the same he smelled inside the brothel. "This way." Rinzler said as he took off running to the left.

"Ice, get Digger and catch up. Wheeler, turn your 'link on full power so she can track it." he heard Cyclops say.

Rinzler slowed as he passed one building, looking up at its closely built neighbor. "Cy, he's on the roof!" he yelled over his shoulder, hearing footsteps up there running away.

"On it!" Cyclops yelled. In one step he was empowered by a spirit, and in two more he had leapt into the air to land on top of the building.

Rinzler followed along the buildings, dashing around the side of one that blocked his path as he noticed Cyclops leaping from one rooftop to the next over him.

The next turn brought Rinzler into an open market that was full of stalls but virtually devoid of people. Despite the plentiful cover he was able to spot Silence as he ran, his aura glowing brightly amidst the gray market astral shadows. "That way!" he said loudly, pointing towards Silence as he took off running again. Once through the market he and Wheeler caught the last glimpse of Silence as he dropped down the other side of a fence.

"Move!" Cyclops yelled, and the two parted for the charging fomori. The old plank fence never had a chance.

Rinzler was right behind Cyclops, looking and smelling for Silence. He got a whiff of him to their left, pointed that way, and took the lead well before he heard voices. Ahead of them was a group of people, loud and rowdy, and as Rinzler got closer he could smell the alcohol on them.

And Silence's scent went straight into them.

"Great, now what?" Wheeler asked.

"You got this, Rinzler?" Cyclops asked.

"Yeah." Rinzler replied.

"Stay behind me and be ready for anything." Cyclops advised Wheeler.

The other group coming out of the bar were likely all Igbo. About half of them were orks, with the rest humans and one troll. The ork in the lead did not look too pleased once he saw Rinzler and the others. "You lost, _oyibo_?" he asked in accented English.

"Not lost, but we're trying to find someone." Rinzler said.

"This Igbo territory." the ork said as the troll stepped forward. "You pay, now."

"I haven't got time for…" Rinzler managed to say just before the troll leveled a rather powerful punch to the side of his face. Pain erupted, blurring his vision momentarily as his head whipped around from blow. Bringing his hand up to his jaw he felt that the troll had actually broken the bone.

Knowing Cyclops was close, was ready to jump into the fight, Rinzler held up his free hand to stop the fomori from retaliating. It was more for show of the others since Cyclops knew full well he did not have to do anything.

Rinzler grunted as he used both hands to fix his broken jaw back into place, all the while sizing up the troll that was now looking rather dumbfounded at him. He breathed deeply twice as torn muscle and shattered bone healed at a phenomenal rate. Once it felt like his jaw was back in one solid piece he lowered his hands, working his mouth a little to make sure everything was as it should have been.

Murmurs started flowing around the Igbo surrounding them, and from what Rinzler saw it was understandable considering the troll was awakened and likely walked the Warrior's Path. He looked to the ork that had been speaking English. "Been a while since someone managed to break a bone." he said, noticing some thin strands of yellow starting to filter in his aura, and in the auras of the others.

"We don't have time to mess around." Cyclops said.

"Right." agreed Rinzler, looking up at the troll that had struck him. He sighed first, then in three lighting fast blows Rinzler had struck the troll to the hip, ribs, and cheek, laying him out cold.

Even intoxicated as the others were, they smart enough to realize Rinzler's capabilities. Well, at least when it came to taking a hit and giving back in return.

"Stop!" Wheeler yelled, and Rinzler heard two gunshots.

"Idiot, that's not Silence." chastised Cyclops.

"Then why'd he run?" Wheeler asked as Rinzler walked over to the person that had been shot.

Cyclops was right, it did not look like Silence at all. Though he was an ork his features were not the same as who they had chased from the Dancing Ork. But at least Rinzler was not limited to sight alone to identify a person. For starters this person smelled just as strongly of the same perfume he had picked up on in the brothel and through the city as they had chased Silence.

And of course there was by a person's aura. Like voices and facial features auras were just as unique to an individual. Rinzler grinned as he saw Silence's aura underneath a forged layer that tried to mask his magical abilities, but did little to hide his identity.

"What'd you shoot him with?" Rinzler asked as he grabbed the disguised Silence by the back of his shirt and hefted the ork to his feet.

"Stick 'n shocks."

"That really him?" Cyclops asked.

"He changed his features, but yes it's him." Rinzler replied.

"You think you can come here and say he is Silence when he is not?" another ork from the group asked.

"I say he is Silence because I can smell the whore's perfume on him." Rinzler returned, passing the captured ork over to Wheeler.

Stupid frequently comes with drunk, and two Igbo men really had no clue when they tried to rush Rinzler. With a twist of his hands at his sides, Rinzler unleashed a pair of relatively weak lightning bolt spells at the two. They collapsed to their knees while blood red sparks of electricity danced about their bodies.

"Sorry we're late." huffed Icebreaker as he trotted up to them. "What'd we miss?"

"An angry mob." Cyclops answered.

"But we got our ork." Wheeler added.

"Oh, hey. Saw through the disguise, eh?" Icebreaker asked.

The captured ork cried out something that was not English.

Icebreaker replied in kind, indicating to Rinzler as he spoke. If anything Rinzler was going to take it as Icebreaker saying he would take his word over the ork's.

"So I guess we'll be going then?" Icebreaker asked, sounding quite happy.

"Unless we still have a problem here." Rinzler commented.

Several of the bar patrons looked over their fallen fellows, the thrice slugged troll that was still kneeling and gasping for breath and the two humans who had been slightly electrocuted. No one said a thing as the two groups parted ways.


End file.
